MEMOIR 

F 

Kev. SAMUEL B. McPHEETERS, D. D. 



B Y 




11 My Faithful Martyr! 1 — Rev. ii. 13, 



j 

SAINT LOUIS: 
SOUTHWESTERN BOOK AND PUBLISHING COMPANY. 
LOUISVILLE: DAVIDSON BROTHERS & CO. 
1871. 



I 

By Transfer 

AM I4 191/ 

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1870, by 

REV. JOHN S. GRASTY, \ t 
In^tlie Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Was^ngton. 

* f 



Stereotyped and printed by 
SOUTHWESTERN BOOK AND PUBLISHING: CO., 

510 AM) 512 WASHINGTON AVENUE, 

SAINT LOUIS. 




BY REV. STUART ROBINSON. 



On the death of Dr. McPheeters the desire seemed spontaneous and 
very general among those who had intimately known him, especially in the 
last years of his life, that some permanent memorial should be preserved of 
a man so noble by nature and of a Christian life and character so pure and 
lovely. 

Such a desire might, indeed, have been the impulse of a very natural 
feeling, akin to that which seeks to preserve the physical lineaments of the 
departed loved ones by means of the artist's skill. The Christian men and 
women who had contemplated with holy pride so heavenly a character among 
them here on earth might naturally enough desire some memorial which 
should preserve for them the lineaments of the spirit of this man of God, 
with whom and under whose lead they had approached the very gate of 
heaven. 

But still other considerations led to this desire of a Memoir of Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters. Earnest and intelligent Christians, w r ho looked to the valuable 
results of such a life in strengthening the faith and increasing the courage of 
the timid and desponding, judged rightly that in a day of rebuke and spiritual 
declension it is important to hold up such examples of what the grace of 
God is still doing in the Church on earth, notwithstanding the prevalence 
of spiritual leanness, by way of demonstrating that the Church is not left 
without witness how the Gospel, in its simplicity, is still the power of God 
through faith unto salvation. 



IV 



INTRODUCTORY REMARKS. 



And what more effective "short method" with the scoffers of our day- 
can be put into the hands of Christian people — so often assailed with the 
charge of the failure of the followers of Christ to come up to the Gospel 
standard which they profess to accept — than the spiritual portraiture of a 
man concerning whom skeptics were often heard to say, that his life and 
character were an insurmountable difficulty in the way of accepting their 
own skeptical theories ? The wish was, therefore, eminently reasonable 
that in such a memorial Dr. McPheeters, being dead, should yet speak to 
the rafters and scoffers of this generation. 

It will not be thought surprising either that the men with whom Dr. 
McPheeters stood during the recent ten years' conflict in the Church, to 
witness for what they deemed truths vital to the Church of God, and even 
to suffer for them as occasion called for it, should earnestly desire to per- 
petuate the memorial of one who witnessed so faithfully and suffered so 
conspicuously in earnestly contending for the "faith once delivered to the 
saints." Indeed, it may be suggested that, aside from considerations of 
reverence for his memory, it is peculiarly important to the interests of truth 
and righteousness that such an example should be held up before the men 
of feeble convictions, that they may see how important the issues involved 
were deemed by the wise and gentle servant of Christ — seeing that, however 
averse by nature to strife and controversy, he felt called upon to stake ease 
and comfort and personal friendship, in short, his all in this world, upon 
issues which these men of feeble convictions have regarded as arising out 
of mere personal or sectional prejudices. 

It is not unfrequently the case, moreover, that a true portraiture of the 
witness for the truth is highly important, if not essential, to the proper 
defense of the truths for which he has testified. While, indeed, good men 
often are the advocates of dangerous error, bad men are seldom the advo- 
cates of truth. And, therefore, it has ever been the strategy of errorists 



INTRODUCTORY REMARKS. 



V 



and usurpers, especially when argument fails them, to attack the character 
of the witnesses for the truth, relying upon the experience of men to draw 
the conclusion that truth and right can hardly be on the side of such advo- 
cates and witnesses. Hence that tyrant of Rome, of whom Tacitus tells 
us, was but a somewhat exaggerated type of partisan bigotry and violence 
in all ages before and since. Speaking of Nero's effort to avert the popular 
eye from himself as the great criminal in the conflagration of Rome, the 
historian says : " Nero, to silence the rumor, substituted as the criminals, 
and executed with terribly ingenious tortures, a people odious for their out- 
rageous practices, whom the rabble called Christians, and at their execution 
they were made a public sport of and wrapped in the skins of savage 
beasts, that, worried and torn of the dogs, they might miserably perish." 

In both points of the strategy — the investing the innocent with the aspect 
of the guilty in the eyes of rational men, and with the covering of the 
savage beasts in the eyes of the irrational dogs, he seldom fails to find 
imitators in every excitement of partisan fury; and it is only what is due to 
the truth of history in calmer times that the persecutors and the persecuted 
be set in their real light, at least before the rational world. 

But, aside from all this, it is manifestly just that the principles for which 
Dr. McPheeters testified should have the benefit of his lofty character as a 
man, and his gentle, wise and holy character as a Christian minister. 

With this general conviction of the importance of such a work, the first 
inquiry was, "Who shall be selected, or, rather, who shall be found, to 
execute the task ? " For it was needful to find one who should combine in 
himself the taste and skill, as a writer, requisite to the work ; the industry 
to collect and the judgment to arrange and organize the materials collected 
from so various quarters ; the opportunities to execute the work speedily 
enough to gratify the public desire ; w T ith the personal knowledge of and 
interest in the life and character of Dr. McPheeters that should make this a 



VI 



INTRODUCTORY REMARKS. 



labor of love. Among the large circle of friends there were many who 
possessed some of the qualifications in an eminent degree, but few in whom 
they all combined. It was determined, after carefully considering the ques- 
tion, that his co-Presbyter and nearest ministerial neighbor, Rev. John S. 
Grasty, should be requested to undertake the work, and after no little doubt 
and hesitation he yielded to the request. 

How the work has been performed must be left to the reader to judge. 
It is not, however, risking much to express the opinion that the author has 
displayed judgment and skill in his method, and in the arrangement of the 
copious materials which his energy and industry had gathered, while excel- 
lent good taste is exhibited throughout in the style of execution. His single 
aim is to present in full view Samuel B. McPheeters — the man, the Chris- 
tian, the minister, the hero. His conception of his office as the biographer 
of a good man is just. He aims not to display himself, but his theme; to 
present the portraitures of Dr. McPheeters as he appeared to those who 
knew and loved him best, without attempting to retouch or improve them ; 
to present the facts upon which the public may pronounce a verdict, without 
attempting to play the advocate in coloring, or the judge in pronouncing 
upon the facts. Even in detailing the story of strifes and controversies, he 
wisely avoids becoming himself, in spirit or word, a party to the contro- 
versies, but leaves each party in its records to tell its own story. 

On the whole, there is every reason to believe that not only the friends 
of Dr. McPheeters, but the public at large, will judge that Mr. Grasty has 
in this work fairly won a title to their esteem and gratitude. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

Page. 

Ancestry — Origin of the name 9 

CHAPTER II. 
Early Days 30 

CHAPTER III. 
Seminary Life 41 

CHAPTER IV. 
Invitation to Virginia — Ministry to the Colored People 67 

CHAPTER V. 
Settlement and Labors in Amelia 84 

CHAPTER VI. 

Removal to St. Louis — Peaceful Years — Visit to New Mexico — Pastoral 
Letters 107 

CHAPTER VII. 
Columbus Assembly — Correspondence with G. P. Strong and others.- ill 

CHAPTER VIII. 

Reply to an Attack in Missouri Democrat — Action of Pine Street Ses- 
sion 141 



VIII 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER IX. 

Page. 

Dr. McPheeters puts his Resignation into the hands of Presbytery— 



Why — Erastian Views of Northern Assembly 159 

CHAPTER X. 
Statement of Doctrine and Principles 168 

CHAPTER XI. 
Interview with Mr. Lincoln — Appeal to Synod 183 

CHAPTER XII. 

w 

Letter to Gov. Gamble — Letters of Judge Bates, President Lincoln, &c. 196 

CHAPTER XIII. 
The Newark Assembly — Speech of Hon. Wm. T. Wood 202 

CHAPTER XIV. 
Speech of Dr. McPheeters before the Assembly in Newark 242 

CHAPTER XV. 

Remarks of Drs. Rice, Junkin, Musgrave and Schenck — Assembly's 
Decision — The Decision Reviewed 278 

CHAPTER XVI. 
Pittsburg Assembly — Declaration and Testimony 299 

CHAPTER XVII. 
Pastoral Work at Mulberry 331 

CHAPTER XVIII. 
Final Visit to St. Louis — Last Days 345 

CHAPTER XIX. 
Testimonials — Letters of Condolence 348 

CHAPTER XX. 
The Author's Estimate 373 



MEMOIR OF 



S. B. McPHEETERS, D. D. 



CHAPTER I. 

ANCESTRY. 

THE late Rev. Wm. McPheeters, D. D., of Raleigh, N. C, 
took paiiis to secure an accurate register of his ancestors 
for several generations. This record shall be used freely, 
First, because of its intrinsic interest; secondly, for the 
reason that it will be agreeable to a wide circle of relatives and 
friends to possess in a permanent form a family history so 
complete ; but, in the third place, and chiefly, because the prov- 
idential dealings with this household illustrate with singular 
clearness that it is the way of the Almighty to " confirm to the 
children " those rich promises of grace which " he made afore- 
time unto the Fathers." 

Dr. Wm. McPheeters says : 

The origin of the name McPheeters, according to a family 
tradition, is as follows : A certain man named Peter Hume, 
who resided in the Highlands of Scotland, had by his first wife 
several children. After her death he married a second wife, 
by whom he had one son. If he had other children by her, 
nothing is now known respecting them. Peter's second mar- 
riage, it is conjectured, took place when he was somewhat 



I 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



advanced in years, and after the children of his first wife (or 
some of them at least) had arrived at maturity. This marriage, 
it is supposed gave dissatisfaction to the children of his first 
wife. In process of time Peter Hume died, and his landed 
estate, it seems, fell into the hands of his first wife's children. 
How long after his death the stepmother and her son lived 
with the children of the first wife, as one family, is not known. 
A separation, however, after some time took place. The chil- 
dren of the first wife, being dissatisfied with their father's second 
marriage, and probably regarding the stepmother and her son 
as beneath them in point of respectability, so conducted them- 
selves toward their half brother as to cause him to withdraw 
from the family. It may be that they drove him off. What 
became of the mother is not known, nor is it known how old 
her son was at the time. After his separation from the family 
he continued to reside in the neighborhood ; but instead of 
receiving and retaining the name of his father, he was called 
Mac-Peters — that is, Peter's son, the word Mac, in the 
Highland dialect, signifying son. After various changes in the 
orthography, the name at length came to be written as at 
present. From this son of Peter Hume has descended, accord- 
ing to the tradition, the McPheeters family. 

My paternal great grandfather was named William. But 
whether he was the son or the grandson of the so-called Mac- 
Peters I have not been able to ascertain. My great grand- 
father, William McPheeters, had several brothers, of whom he 
was the youngest ; and when about sixteen years of age, dur- 
ing the time of Oliver Cromwell, left Scotland and passed 
over into Ireland. It may be that he and some of his brothers 
were soldiers in Cromwell's army. My great grandfather set- 
tled in Ireland, and was there twice married. The name of 
his first wife is not known, and all his children by her are said 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



I I 



to have died when young. During the lifetime of his first 
wife the following incident is recorded of him : One day, 
being absent from home, several native Irish came to the 
house and demanded of his wife her husband's money, which 
being refused, they dragged her out of the house and immersed 
her in a spring or pool ot water, threatening to drown her if 
she did not give up the money or inform them where it might 
be found. During this barbarous treatment she got her thigh 
bone dislocated. But her husband, providentially returning 
home at the time, fell upon the savages, killed one or two of 
them, put the rest to flight, and rescued his wife. After her 
death, which it is supposed took place some years after, he 
married a second time, when considerably advanced in years. 
He is said to have lived to a great age. His second wife's 
name was Janett McClellen. By her he had four children, 
three daughters and one son. The son was the youngest child 
of the family, and was named William, after his father. At the 
time of his father's death he is said to have been about eight 
years old. This William was my grandfather. He married in 
Ireland, and after marriage lived there about seven years pre- 
vious to his emigration to America, State of Pennsylvania. 
His first wife was Rebecca Thompson, by whom he had ten 
children. My grandfather, after living several years in Penn- 
sylvania, removed to Augusta county, Virginia. Martha, his 
second daughter, while living in Pennsylvania, married Samuel 
Donney, and afterward removed with her husband to Augusta 
county, Va. She was the mother of fourteen children. Re- 
becca Donney married a Mr. McCutchen, of Augusta county, 
and had a numerous family. Mary Ann married Captain 
Charles Campbell, of Rockbridge county. Besides other chil- 
dren, she was the mother of Dr. Campbell of Lexington ; of 
John W. Campbell of Petersburg, and of William Campbell, 



12 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



who married my youngest sister. Betsey Donney, the sixth 
daughter, married Major Wilson, of Rockbridge. She was the 
mother of the Rev. James C. Wilson, of Waynesboro. Mary, 
or Molly McPheeters, the third daughter of my grandfather, 
married Alexander Crawford, and was the mother of eleven 
children, two of whom were Presbyterian ministers. The Rev. 
Edward Crawford resided near Abingdon, Va. The Rev. 
James Crawford removed to the State of Kentucky, and was 
pastor of the Walnut Hill Church, near Lexington. Alexan- 
der Crawford and Mary his wife, the parents of this family, 
were both killed in Augusta county by a party of Indians. He 
was shot in his own house, and the house was burnt down over 
him. She, in attempting to make her escape, was killed w T ith a 
tomahawk a short distance from the house. They were both 
buried near the North Mountain, in the glebe graveyard, upper 
end of Augusta county, Virginia. 

William McPheeters, my father, was born in Pennsylvania 
about the year 1729 or 1730. He married Rachel Moore, of 
Rockbridge county, Va. Both were members of the Church. 
My father was also magistrate and a Ruling Elder. The Rev. 
A. Scott was his pastor. The family consisted of ten children, 
three sons and seven daughters. My father died October 28, 
1807, and was buried in the glebe graveyard before mentioned. 
James, his fourth child, received a liberal education ; com- 
menced the study of medicine in Staunton, afterward attended 
medical lectures of Dr. Rush in Philadelphia, and for a few 
years practiced medicine in the town of Fincastle, Va. Both 
he and his w T ife were members of the Church and esteemed 
exemplary Christians. Rebecca McPheeters, the fifth child of 
my father, married John Gamble, the brother of Col. Robert 
Gamble, of Richmond, Va. She was a woman of decided 
piety. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 1 3 

James Moore, my maternal grandfather, was born in Ireland, 
and emigrated with his brother Joseph to America, Pennsyl- 
vania, sometime about the year 1726. My grandfather, after 
his arrival in America, married Jane Walker. She, too, was 
born in Ireland. I have a distinct recollection of both my 
maternal grandparents, James Moore and Jane Walker. I 
recollect that my grandfather used to retire regularly to a room 
up stairs, where, after closing the door, he remained for some 
time. Noticing this, when a small boy, and wishing to find 
out what he was about, I discovered, through a small aperture 
under the door, that he was on his knees engaged at secret 
prayer. My grandmother, sometime previous to her death, 
remarked, "when I die I shall have a bonny easy death." Ac- 
cordingly, during her last sickness, while some of the family 
were sitting in the room with her, she either turned herself 
over in the bed, or was aided in so doing by some one present. 
Thus lying still for some time, the remark was made, " into 
what a fine quiet sleep our grandmother has fallen." But when, 
after some time, her bed was approached and her situation 
examined into, it was found that her spirit had, quietly and 
without a struggle, taken its flight to the unknown world. 
Mary Moore, the second child of my grandfather, was twice 
married. Her first husband was named Paxton, by whom she 
had one child, named Samuel. Her second husband was 
Major A. Stuart, by whom she had four children. She and 
her husband were members of the Church. They resided near 
Brownsburg, Rockbridge county. Major Stuart had two sons 
who were Superior Court Judges, viz. : His son Archibald, by 
a former wife, and his son Alexander, by Mary Moore, his 
second wife. Elizabeth Moore, the third child of my grand- 
father, married Michael Coalter. They were both members of 
the Church. A grand-daughter of Michael and Elizabeth 



MEMOIR Of s. b. m'pheeters, d. d. 



Coalter married Hon. Wra. C. Preston, of South Carolina. 
Her sister married Judge Harper, of the same State. John 
Coalter, son of Michael and Elizabeth, was Judge of the Supe- 
rior Court of Virginia, and afterward Judge of the High Court 
of Appeals. This gentleman was four times married. His 
third wife was Frances Tucker, daughter of St. George Tucker, 
Judge of High Court of Appeals, Virginia. The eighth child 
of Michael and Elizabeth Coalter, my beloved cousin Mary, 
after marriage, removed to the State of Missouri. She was the 
first wife of Beverly Tucker, youngest son of St. George 
Tucker, and half brother to John Randolph, of Roanoke, 

James Moore, the sixth child of my grandfather, married 
Martha Poague and had nine children. He removed some 
time after marriage from Rockbridge county to a remote fertile 
valley among the mountains in the Southwestern part of Vir- 
ginia. After the family had resided for some time in their 
frontier situation they were broken up and nearly all destroyed 
by a party of Indians. James Moore, the oldest child of the 
family, was first taken prisoner by two Indians. He had been 
sent to a field some distance from the house for a horse. As 
he went along he was seized with an unaccountable panic; 
the impression on his mind was that he would be torn to pieces 
by a wild beast. He was on the point of returning to the 
house, but fearing lest he should be reproached for cowardice 
he proceeded onward toward the field. He had not pro- 
ceeded far before two Indians stepped out from behind a tree 
and laid hold on him. On looking up and finding himself in 
the hands of human beings and not in the paws of savage beasts, 
he, for the moment, was somewhat comforted. The Indians 
took him to the field and by his assistance endeavored to catch 
one or more of the horses ; but in this they were unsuccessful. 
The horses would allow the boy to approach them, but when 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 1 5 

he put forth his hand to take hold of a horse one of the Indians 
would immediately take hold of him. By this the horse being 
affrighted, instantly made his escape. After repeated and un- 
successful efforts to get possession of the horses the Indians 
commenced their long journey, and conducted their little pris- 
oner through a mountainous and pathless desert far North to 
the place of their residence. He immediately fell into the 
hands of a French family residing in the Indian country. In 
this family he lived for several years, and, if I am not mistaken, 
was kindly treated. About two years and a half after the cap- 
ture of James Moore, the two Indians who took him prisoner 
formed, as it is supposed, a company and conducted them to 
the house of his unprotected and unsuspecting father. On a 
certain day, early in the morning, the Indians were seen rushing 
down an adjacent hill in a furious manner and approaching 
the house. James Moore, the father of the family, not being 
in the house at the moment, was shot and killed some two or 
three hundred yards from the house. The three following 
children, Rebecca, Alexander and William, were shot down 
near the house. The house was then plundered and burned 
down. John, Jane, Mary and Margaret, with their mother, 
were taken prisoners. A Miss Evans, who was at the time 
residing in the family, was also taken prisoner. John, on the 
first day of the march, a few miles from the house, was, on 
some account, killed with a tomahawk. After traveling some 
distance farther the Indians finding Margaret somewhat trouble- 
some, she being only about fifteen months old, killed her by 
dashing her against a tree. After a tedious and tiresome march 
of about forty days, the Indians, with their four remaining pris- 
oners, reached their towns, somewhere in the Northern part of 
Indiana or Ohio, or perhaps in Michigan, near Detroit. After 
their arrival Jane and her mother were given up to a disaffected 



1 6 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D 

Indian and cruelly put to death. This, it is supposed, was 
done by the Indian in the way of revenge for some injury 
received by him from the white people. Joseph, one of the 
children of this family, was in Rockbridge, going to school, at 
the time when his brothers and sisters were murdered by the 
Indians, and, of course, did not fall into their hands. As to 
James Moore and his sister Mary and Miss Evans, they were 
providentially located, it seems, at no great distance from each 
other among the Indians. The brother of Miss Evans, some 
years after, with the view and hope of recovering his sister, went 
in search of her, and on finding her he succeeded, by purchase 
or otherwise, in obtaining not only her liberty, but also the lib- 
erty of James Moore and Mary Moore his sister. After a long 
and fatiguing journey Mr. Evans, with his rescued captives, 
arrived at my father's house sometime about the year 1790. 
My aged grandfather and grandmother, being at the house at 
the time, were overjoyed and almost overcome at the unex- 
pected return of their long lost grandchildren. Being a small 
boy at the time, and at school that day, on reaching home I 
found the family, as I distinctly recollect, in a state of great 
excitement. The dead was alive — the lost was found. In 
process of time Mary Moore, the Indian captive, married the 
Rev. Samuel Brown, a distinguished Presbyterian minister, the 
pastor of New Providence Church, Rockbridge county. She 
was the mother of a numerous family ; and being a woman of 
importunate prayer and devoted piety, it pleased God to give 
her five sons, who, after receiving a liberal education, became 
preachers of the Gospel. One of her daughters married the 
Rev. James Morrison, who succeeded his father-in-law as pas- 
tor of New Providence. 

From a credible source I have derived the following infor- 
mation as to the ancestors of my maternal grandmother, whose 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 1 7 

maiden name was Jane Walker. John Rutherford, of Scot- 
land, married a wife who was of the family of the Rev. 
Joseph Alliene, author of the "Alarm." Her maiden name is 
not known. Said John Rutherford had a daughter whose 
name was Catherine Rutherford ; she married a man named 
Walker. His Christian name is not known. This Walker had 
by his wife, Catharine Rutherford, a son whose name was John 
Walker. John Walker was born in Wigtown, Scotland, and 
was the father of my grandmother, Jane Walker, and, of course, 
the grandfather of my mother, Rachel Moore. Thus it appears 
that the genealogical line traced from my mother up to John 
Rutherford, of Scotland, stands as follows : 



1. My Mother Rachel Moore. 

— Her Father James Moore. 

2. Her Mother . . . ~ Jane Walker. 

— Her Grandfather John Walker. 

3. Her Grandmother Name not known. 

— Her Great Grandfather Walker. 

4. Her Great Grandmother Catharine Rutherford. 

— Her Great Great Grandfather John Rutherford. 

5. Her G. G. Grandmother, of the family of Jos. Alliene. 



This John Rutherford, the great great grandfather ot my 
mother, was either the nephew or the full cousin of that dis- 
tinguished divine and author, the Rev. Samuel Rutherford, of 
Scotland. My mother's grandfather, John Walker, of Wig- 
town, Scotland, had seven children. My grandmother, Jane 
Walker, was born in Ireland. Her father, John Walker, of 
Wigtown, Scotland, before marriage, settled in Ireland. He 
there married. From Ireland, with his whole family, includ- 
ing my grandmother, he emigrated to the state of Pennsyl- 
vania, where my grandfather and grandmother were married. 
Some years after their marriage, and after the birth 01 three or 
four of their children, they, with the whole Walker family, or 
2 



l8 MEMOIR OF S. B. m'pHEETERS, D. D. 

the great part of them, removed to Rockbridge, Va., and 
settled on a creek in that part of the country called "Bur 
den's Land," and afterward "Walker's Creek," from the several 
families of that name which had settled there. These families, 
being somewhat numerous and all closely allied, were some- 
times pleasantly called "the Creek Nation." 

Rachel McPheeters, my mother, was born in the year 1736, 
in the state of Pennsylvania, Chester county, Nottingham 
Township. When about three years old she removed with her 
father, James Moore, and his family from Pennsylvania to the 
state of Virginia, Rockbridge county. She and her sister 
Mary, who was a little older than herself, were carried on a 
horse in large baskets swung across the horse's back. In 
this situation, balancing each other and with their heads pro- 
jecting from the baskets, they traveled along in comfort. My 
mother, when very young, was in some degree impressed on 
the subject of religion. One day when set to watch by her- 
self in the cornfield, her mind was raised above the world with 
delightful devotional feelings. From her early youth she was 
strictly attentive to the duty of secret prayer, but did not 
recollect much as to the nature of her prayers. When she 
was somewhat older, say between twelve and fifteen years of 
age, although gay and lively in her disposition, she could not 
bear to listen to trifling or useless conversation, but always 
wished for something interesting and improving in the circle 
in which at any time she was placed. Having frequent occa- 
sion about this period of her life to pass to and from a 
neighbor's house, she was often constrained to turn aside for 
secret prayer, in which she usually experienced much enjoy- 
ment. And at home, during family prayer, she was frequently 
melted into tenderness and shed many tears. To the public 
means of grace she was always particularly attentive, and 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 1 9 

took so deep an interest therein that she would sometimes 
walk on foot four or five miles to church— New Providence. 
After her marriage, which took place when she was between 
nineteen and twenty years of age, she removed from Rock- 
bridge to Augusta county, and there, after sometime, joined 
the Church, then under the pastoral care of the Rev. Charles 
Cummings. The place of worship was called Brown's meet- 
ing house. It is now called Hebron church. The Rev. A. 
Scott was the successor of Mr. Cummings. Under his pas- 
toral care she continued a member of the Church for many 
years. But nothing remarkable occurred in her religious ex- 
perience for eight or ten years after her marriage, with the 
exception of what took place when her daughter Jane was an 
infant. When Jane was an infant, her mother, sitting one 
day in the room by herself with her babe at her breast, was 
favored in a remarkable degree with the presence of God's 
Holy Spirit, filling her with joy and divine consolation. She 
was melted down in tenderness, and a profusion of tears 
flowed from her eyes. She arose from her seat and standing 
on the floor enjoyed a soul-refreshing and almost overwhelm- 
ing view of the glory of God. In this situation God's ques- 
tion to her seemed to be this : " Could you withhold from me 
anything that I should ask ? " " Nothing, nothing, Lord," 
was the reply. A further inquiry then seemed to be made : 
" Could you withhold from me the infant now reclining on 
your breast ? " Her answer was again, " No, no, Lord;" and 
she thought that in the ecstacy of her feelings she held out 
the child as if to give it away to the Lord forever. My sister 
Jane is represented as growing up to maturity, a girl of 
great promise. At an early age, however, her mind became 
deeply impressed with the idea that her continuance in this 
world was to be of short duration. That such was her pre- 



20 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



vailing belief is evident from remarks which she occasionally 
made respecting herself. One day riding in company with a 
Mr. Craig, he took the opportunity of recommending to her 
good opinion a gentleman of his acquaintance. She remarked 
as follows : " You need say nothing to me respecting him or 
any one else. I hope before long to be happier than any 
one on earth can make me." " Why do you think so ? " said 
Mr. Craig. " Oh," replied she, " the Lord has done great 
things for me." Not long before her death, and at the time 
in her usual health, she sent a message to her cousin, James 
Moore, to this effect: "Tell Cousin James he must come and 
see me soon or it may be that he will never see me." The 
week previous to her last fatal attack of sickness she visited 
the house of her uncle, Michael Coalter, a short distance 
from her father's house, where she spent three or four days. 
When about to return home on Saturday some one of the 
family inquired of her as follows : "Jane, when will you come 
over again ?" She replied, u Perhaps never" It seems that a 
dream which she had about this time made a deep impression 
on. her mind, and confirmed her in the belief that she was not 
to live long. The substance of her dream was as follows : On 
marrying a man dressed in black she accompanied him for a con- 
siderable distance along a narrow path through a lonesome wood. 
She wondered whither he was about to conduct her and where 
she should find his house. At length she came to his house, 
and it was under ground. When taken sick she told an ac- 
quaintance that her disease would prove fatal. " From it," 
said she, "I shall never recover." On Sabbath public prayer 
was offered in the church in her behalf, by Rev. A. Scott, the 
pastor. After service he visited her. Her mother approached 
her bed and said : "Jane, are you sensible that you are going 
to leave us?" She replied, with much composure, "Yes, I 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



21 



am." "Well, what hope have you concerning yourself?" "I 
hope the Lord will have mercy on, me, for Christ's sake. 11 
"Yes," replied her mother, "not for anything in you or done by 
you." "No, no, no," was her rejoinder. "But what ground 
have you for your hopes?" said her mother. "I know that 
God is merciful and gracious," said she. "But do you know 
this in your own experience ?" inquired the mother. Jane re- 
plied, "Yes, I do, and wish to know it more and more." Her 
mother exhorted her to put all her trust in Christ as an all 
sufficient Savior. Finally, she lifted up her hands and said, 
"Lord have mercy on me." She breathed her last without a 
struggle or a groan. 

To return to my mother. On a certain communion Sab- 
bath, when she was about thirty years of age, her feelings and 
exercises were during the day unusually comfortable. Some 
pious friends from Walker's Creek accompanied her home that 
night. Their conversation till bed time was on the subject of 
religion. After retiring to bed, my mother had such astonish- 
ing and overwhelming views of the beauty and glory of the 
heavenly inheritance as to deprive her of nearly all her bodily 
strength. These rapturous views continued to recur, at short 
intervals, during the whole night, and sleep was entirely taken 
away from her. About daybreak her views were still more 
rapturous and overwhelming than ever before. After that the 
influences under which she had spent the night were gradually 
withdrawn. During the next day she experienced great com- 
posure of mind, and felt no inconvenience from the want of 
sleep. But why God had visited and favored her in so re- 
markable a manner she could not understand, nor was she in- 
clined to build her religious hopes on the rapturous vision 
which she had enjoyed. After this her exercises were various. 
Sometimes she was happy in the enjoyment of religion, some- 



22 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

times destitute of feeling, and sometimes backward to receive, 
as coming from God, the comforts bestowed on her. As it 
was customary in the country congregations where she wor- 
shiped to have two sermons in the summer months, it was her 
usual practice, in the interval of worship, to retire for medita- 
tion and prayer. And often on these occasions had she reason 
to bless God for the tokens of his gracious presence. David 
McPheeters, the second child of the family, died from home — 
a young man, in the twenty-fourth year of his age. Being a 
son greatly beloved, the unexpected stroke was to his mother 
a severe trial. And though she did not sorrow as having no 
hope, yet his death was to her a subject of the deepest solici- 
tude. Some short time after his death, on a certain Sabbath, 
while she was reclining on her bed, it pleased God to give her 
clear and satisfactory evidence of her acceptance in the Beloved. 
All her doubts were removed, and with Thomas she could say, 
" My Lord and my God." She felt in her own delightful ex- 
perience that God's favor was life, and his loving kindness 
better than life. Being thus near to God, and enjoying in so 
great a degree the gracious smiles of his reconciled counte- 
nance, the thought occurred to her that she might now inquire 
respecting her son, and ask of God some evidence of his hap- 
piness in the world of spirits. But soon did she check the pre- 
sumptuous inquiry, and felt reproved for attempting to pry into 
the unrevealed secrets of God's righteous government. " With 
this great truth I must be satisfied. The Judge of all the earth 
will do right." 

" Then let my Sovereign, if he please, 
Lock up his marvelous decrees ; 
Why should I wish Him to reveal 
What He thinks proper to conceal ?" 

Several years afterward, on a certain occasion, she had clear 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D, D. 



2 3 



and exalted views of the excellence of the inheritance of the 
saints in light, but could not at the time appropriate to herself 
any part of that inheritance. It was to her as if she had got 
on Pisgah's Mount, beholding the promised land in all its 
beauty and excellency, witnessing the happiness of its inhabit- 
ants — their far more exceeeding and eternal weight of glory; but 
alas ! for her, she had no part or lot among them. This, of 
course, produced great heaviness and depression of spirits. In 
her distress she determined to visit her pastor, Rev. A. Scott, 
living some four or five miles distant. Accordingly she set out, 
and on her way the following lines, found in one of President 
Davies' poems, came into her mind with great force : 

'* If I am doomed Thy frowns to feel, 
Why didst thou in Thy love reveal ? 
Why did thy beauties charm mine eye, 
If I must see and ne'er enjoy ? 
Or, why torment me with the views 
Of bliss I must forever lose?" 

These words produced .a wonderful change in her feelings. 
She felt assured that God would never cast off those to whom 
he had unveiled the glories of his kingdom, and to whom he 
had given a relish for the enjoyments and employments of 
heaven. Then she was enabled to 

' ' read her title clear 

To mansions in the skies." 

When she reached the house of her pastor he was not at 
home. But God had met her on the way, and that was 
enough. " And there met him ten men that were lepers, who 
stood afar off; and they lifted up their voices and said: Jesus, 
Master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them he said 
unto them, Go show yourselves unto the priests. And it came 
to pass that as they went they were cleansed" She returned 



24 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



home greatly relieved — found that she had done wrong in not 
receiving and appropriating to herself the comforts which 
God had sent, and continued for a considerable time in the 
enjoyment of a good hope, through grace, that God had 
mercifully granted her an interest in the incorruptible inherit- 
ance of the saints in light. Some time after this, having again 
fallen into a state of darkness and deep distress under the 
hidings of God's face, she visited New Providence Church on 
a sacramental occasion, when the late Dr. Waddell, then a 
young man, was in attendance. With him she sought and 
obtained an interview. After he had talked with her long and 
to good purpose, she turned around from him on her seat and, 
absorbed in thought, said to herself, audibly, " Well, I am will- 
ing to do and to suffer anything, so that I may enjoy nearness 
to God." It was not long before she obtained the desired re- 
lief, and was enabled to rejoice in the God of her salvation. 
As she advanced in years she had her trials and difficulties ; 
but it pleased God not unfrequently to grant unto her ///// as- 
surance of her gracious state, and at times her happiness in 
the enjoyment of religion was as much as the house of clay 
could well endure. She died January 30, 1826, aged ninety 
years. Her son-in law, J. Logan, with whom she lived, in- 
formed me that her passage to the world of spirits was easy 
and tranquil, that she retained her senses to the last, and that 
after a quiet repose of nearly two days and two nights, during 
much of which time she appeared to be in a profound sleep, she 
left the world without a groan or a struggle. She was buried 
beside the grave ot her husband, in the glebe graveyard, 
Augusta county, Virginia. 

On March 12, 1842, Rev. Francis McFarland, D. D., wrote 
to me : "I hear from Mr. Logan that you wish from me the 
substance of a conversation which I had with your pious 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



2 5 



mother. As I took notes of it at the time, you may depend 
on its accuracy. It is as follows : She took great delight in 
attending at the house of God, and especially on communion 
Sabbaths. But as she advanced in years she was not always 
able to be present on those occasions. On a certain Sabbath, 
when we were celebrating the Lord's Supper, she being too 
infirm to be present (about the time, as I suppose, when we were 
at the table), she told me a few days after that in musing she 
thought herself at the Lord's table, and seated at the end of it 
next to me ; that she plainly saw the bread and wine, and that 
as I handed the bread to her and pronounced the words, 
< Broken for you /' that those words came with such power to 
her mind as almost to overwhelm her, and that the delightful 
state of mind which followed continued the whole day. I re- 
marked to her that I supposed she enjoyed the occasion as 
much as she sometimes did when she was actually at the 
table. ' 0, yes, I have been twenty times at the table,' said she, 
' when my enjoyment has not been so great.' I then said, 
' Now, when you are deprived of the opportunity of attending 
on this ordinance, the Lord is giving you the enjoyment with- 
out it.' At this her heart was filled and her utterance was 
choked. On another occasion, July 19, 1825, she told me 
that recently, just before a severe turn of illness, she had had a 
sense of such nearness to God as she had scarcely ever experi- 
enced before, or as she thought was possible in the flesh. In- 
deed, she thought her frail body could not have borne much 
more. She said, moreover, that she had found it a pretty 
common case, shortly before a severe spell of sickness, to have 
such manifestations. At another time she told me, that as to 
the matter of dying she had no fear about it. And that if she 
should be called off suddenly, she wished me to preach her 
funeral sermon from Amos iv. 12 : 6 Prepare to meet thy God, 



26 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



Israel.' And from that text I did preach her funeral. Her 
piety was of the very 1 ugliest order." 

Dr. Wm. McPheeters, the father of Samuel, says of himself : 
" According to the best information which I have been able to 
obtain, I date my birth September 28, 1788. I was born in 
Augusta county, Virginia, near the North Mountain, about 
seven miles Southwest of Staunton, on the head waters of the 
Middle River, a branch of the Shenandoah, which river is a 
branch of the Potomac. 

" At different country schools, in the counties of Augusta and 
Rockbridge, I was taught the elements of a common English 
education. In Staunton, the county town of Augusta, I began 
my classical course, and finished my education at Liberty Hall 
Academy, now Washington College, Lexington, Virginia. 
The Academy at that time was under the superintendence of 
the Rev. William Graham, a distinguished Presbyterian cler- 
gyman. 

" In the year 1797 I traveled in company with Dr. Humphreys 
to the State of Kentucky, where, in the month, of October of 
the same year, I began to read medicine with my brother, Dr. 
James McPheeters, in the town of Cynthiana, Harrison county. 

1 continued my studies with him until the summer of 1799, 
when I returned home in company with my brother-in-law, 
John Logan. Before I left Kentucky I joined the Church, 
under the pastoral care of Wm. Robison, near Cynthiana. In 
the month of September or October, 1799, I was received 
under the care of Lexington Presbytery as a candidate for the 
Gospel ministry. My theological studies were pursued under 
the direction chiefly of the Rev. Samuel Brown, New Provi- 
dence, Rockbridge county. I was licensed at New Providence 
Church, April 19, 1802. The Rev. Benjamin Erwin, on-behalf 
of the Presbytery, officiated on the occasion. In the month 



MEMOIR OF S. P». M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



27 



of October, 1802, I visited the State of Kentucky, and itin- 
erated and preached there in various places until about the 
middle of March, 1803. I then passed over into the State of 
Ohio, preached in Chillicothe and other places, and returned 
again to Kentucky in the month of April, same year. About 
the last of June, 1803, I took charge of the Church in the town 
of Danville, Mercer county, Kentucky ; and there also taught 
a small school. I boarded a mile or two from the town, at the 
house of Col. W. McDowell, and continued there until June, 
1804. I then returned to Cynthiana, and afterward made a 
second visit to Chillicothe, at that time the seat of government 
of Ohio. I returned to Kentucky, and on the 25th of Sep- 
tember, 1804, I married my first wife, Elizabeth McDowell, 
near Lexington, Kentucky. About the last of October, same 
year, I left Kentucky and returned with my wife to Virginia. 
During the winter I visited the counties of Greenbriar and 
Monroe, and preached in vacant congregations. On my return 
to Augusta I made my father's house my home until Septem- 
ber, 1805. During six months of the time I preached to two 
vacant congregations west of the mountains, New Lebanon 
Church, Calf Pasture, Augusta county, and Windy Cove Church, 
Bath county. On the first of September, 1805, I returned to 
Kentucky with my wife, on a visit to her father. I remained in 
Kentucky until the second week of November, when, with my 
wife, I returned to Virginia and took charge of Bethel Church, 
December, 1805. About a month afterward I removed from 
my father's house to Greenville, a small village a few miles 
from the Church, and there, besides preaching to the congre- 
gation, I taught a classical school. On Friday, April 19, 1806, 
I received a call from Bethel Church, and the Monday follow- 
ing, April 21, 1806, I was ordained to the whole work of the 
Gospel ministry. Dr. Baxter preached the ordination sermon, 



28 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



and the Rev. Samuel Brown presided and gave the charge. 
It was, as well as I now recollect, in the month of December, 
1806, that my wife, Elizabeth McDowell, after a lingering 
sickness, died in the town of Greenville. She was buried at 
Bethel Church. During the next year I removed from Green- 
ville to my farm a short distance from the town. More than 
two years after the death of Elizabeth McDowell I married a 
second wife, Lavinia Moore, March 18, 1809. She was the 
daughter of Alexander and Elizabeth Moore. I married her 
in the State of Tennessee, Blount county, to which place her 
mother, then a widow, had removed from Lexington, Virginia. 
On the 30th of December following, my wife, Lavinia, gave 
birth to a daughter, and died Monday, January 15, 1810. She 
was buried at Bethel Church, beside the grave of my first wife. 
About this time I received, by a special messenger, an invita- 
tion from the Trustees of the Academy, Raleigh, North Caro- 
lina, to preside over that Institution as its principal teacher, 
and to preach to the town congregation, then vacant in conse- 
quence of the removal of the Rev. Wm. Turner to the town of 
Fayetteville. On Wednesday, February 21, 1810, I set out 
on a visit to Raleigh. Having reached the place, and being 
pleased with the prospect, I accepted the invitation which I 
had received. I then returned to Augusta, Virginia, and made 
preparations for my removal to North Carolina. Having 
arranged my affairs, I left Augusta and reached Raleigh, May 
22, 1810, and in the month of June took charge of the Acad- 
emy and congregation. On the 10th day of March, 181 2, I 
married my third wife, Margaret Ann Curry McDaniel, of 
Washington, Beaufort county, North Carolina. She was the 
daughter of William and Parthenia McDaniel. Her father 
was born in Scotland, and emigrated to America when quite 
young. His occupation was merchandizing. My third wife 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



2 9 



was the mother of twelve children (of whom Samuel Brown 
was the fifth). I continued my connection with the Acad- 
emy until I handed in my resignation, in the year 1826. My 
connection, however, with my congregation was continued for 
several years after. But, as I continued to reside in Raleigh, I 
was invited February, 1836, to resume my ministerial services 
in the Church. This invitation I thought it my duty to decline. 
The same year, 1836, I was invited to Fayetteville to take 
charge of a Female School in that place. I accepted the invi- 
tation, and, without removing my family, commenced operations 
there in the month of October; but finding that I was not 
likely to enjoy my health in Fayetteville, I left the place in the 
month of July following. In the autumn of same year I took 
a Missionary agency under the direction of the Board of Mis- 
sions of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, and 
continued in that service until the spring of 1839. Some 
time in the year 1840 I was elected to the Presidency of 
Davidson College, North Carolina, but owing to ill health I 
was obliged to decline the invitation." 



30 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



CHAPTER II. 

EARLY DAYS. 

Samuel Brown, so called after the Rev. Samuel Brown, 
of New Providence, Virginia, the fifth child of Rev. 
William McPheeters, D. D., and his wife, Margaret Ann 
Curry, was born in Raleigh, North Carolina, on September 
1 8, 1819. He was baptized in the same city, March 5, 1820, 
by Rev. Shepherd K. Kollock. 

It will be noted that this child is the descendant of a long 
line of God-fearing ancestors. While to many, who boast of 
royal blood and trace their lineage back to kings, this may be 
a matter of trifling import, yet in the eye of the Almighty it 
is a heritage of inestimable value. For has it not been true 
from the beginning that the " secret of the Lord is with the 
righteous, and He blesseth the habitation of the just ?" The 
assertion, whenever made, that the children of the pious are 
more obdurate and incorrigible than others, is simply absurd. 
The thoughtful need only look at the facts. How would Zion 
mourn to-day did not God " bring the sons of Levi to minister 
at His altars?" At this hour what names in the ministry are 
best known to " all the congregations of Israel ?" Are they 
not Waddell, Hoge, Alexander, Rice, Miller, Brown, Lacy, 
Smith, Wilson, and others, constituting a list too long to be 
mentioned ? The pastors and preachers who bear these 
names to-day are the descendants of faithful men, who, in 
generations gone by, testified, from the sacred desk, to the 
glorious grace of God. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 3 1 

It is a fact to be deeply pondered, that the covenant of 
God, for the most part, abides in the family. And hence, in 
old established communities, even after a long succession of 
years, the same familiar names among the worshipers can 
easily be detected. The promise is to the faithful and his 
seed. Therefore, viewed in the light of eternal relations, to 
be the son or daughter of believing parents is a heritage more 
truly illustrous and noble than to be the scion of a house 
whose progenitor was a king. When the apostle calls to 
remembrance the unfeigned faith of Timothy, it is connected 
in his mind with " the gift of God," which dwelt first in his 
grandmother Lois, and afterward in Eunice, his mother. 

The child grew, but during the early days of McPheeters 
no startling " prophecies " of future eminence can anywhere be 
found. And does it not, after all, excite a smile upon the face 
of the initiated when biographers, in solemn gravity, enter- 
tain the public with certain marvels of genius in the boyhood 
of great men. To awaken wonder and surprise, one incident 
after another is related, that a minute observer of young peo- 
ple is fully aware happens over and over again with " the 
bairns" of the commonest " cotter " in the land. The writer 
has lived much with children, and, speaking from careful 
observation, it is his decided conviction that the history of 
any one child of healthful, moral, physical and intellectual 
organization may be confidently accepted, with scarcely an 
exception, as representative of all others. In riper days al- 
most every heart can exclaim, 

"There was a time when meadow, grove and stream 
The earth, and every common sight, 

To me did seem 
Appareled in celestial light — 
The glory and freshness of a dream." 



5 2 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



There is not a parent in the world who is not belabored by 
the little boy or girl standing at the knee with questions far 
too deep for proud philosophy. And what fond mother does 
not pour into friendly ears accounts of astonishing discrimina- 
tion in the mind of her remarkable child ? And, even if in 
reality there are signs of precocity, this does not logically and 
necessarily foreshadow renown. 

One boy is recalled who, if reports be true, had read at 
four the Holy Scriptures through; the man lives in ob- 
scurity to-day, and the world is none the wiser. Another, 
when thirty months old, took into his memory, never to be 
forgotten, a family mansion — the farm — its divisions, sur- 
roundings and peculiarities, down to the smallest minutiae, and 
yet this name has never been pronounced among the great. 
Of the three persons who now sit in the writer's study, not one 
can recall the period when he or she began to read. And 
yet neither of the three are widely known to fame. 

It is needless, therefore, to dwell upon the childhood of 
McPheeters. It is understood by all who knew him, that 
from the beginning he manifested intelligence, courage, mag- 
nanimity and honor. There never was a doubt about his 
tenderness or sincerity. The " brown-haired," bright-eyed boy 
was also a general favorite. Everybody washed him well, 
for his cheerful countenance and genial humor made him a 
welcome addition to any circle. 

An incident occurred at this period which Dr. McPheeters 
related, not long before his death, to the writer, in illustration 
of the subtlety of pride. "Mrs. Devereux was a friend of my 
father's family. She was a lady of wealth, and noted for her 
good sense and Christian liberality. On one occasion Mrs. 
D. bought a bill of goods in the city of Raleigh, and on re- 
tiring from the store looked around in vain for a porter, all 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



33 



of whom were colored in those days. I stood near, and 
seeing her perplexity, stepped forward quickly and said : " Mrs. 
Devereaux, I will carry your bundles for you. ? The good 
woman looked at me earnestly for a moment, and then re- 
plied : 'Sammy, I feel afraid for you, you are growing to be so 
proud. Other little white boys would be compromised by 
taking the place of a servant, but you can do it with safety — 
you are Sammy McPheeters, the son of the Rev. Dr. McPheet- 
ers, and the world will admire your condescension! Sammy, 
you can take the bundles, but you must keep a close watch, 
my boy, on your pride.' " 

Dr. McPheeters tells us in his journal that he remained with 
his parents, in the city of Raleigh, N. C, while he was re- 
ceiving the rudiments of an education, until January, 1836. 
He then went to the Caldwell Institute, a Presbyterial school 
established in Greensboro'. He remained there under the 
instruction of Rev. Dr. Wilson, until he joined the sophomore 
class at the University of North Carolina. At the latter Insti- 
tution we hear of him in a letter from his old companion and 
friend, Samuel F. Phillips, Esq. : 

" Loyalty to the cherished memory of a classmate at Chapel 
Hill prevailed w T ith me to yield a ready assent to the part you 
assigned me of sketching the college life of him whom, under 
the impressions you have aroused, I will again call Sam Mc- 
Pfieeters. The assent may have been two ready, as I find that 
the personages and incidents in that life which produced the 
strong impressions that remain have, for the most part, faded 
away, or at least into dim outlines. I shall have to submit to 
you an estimate rather than a sketch. 

" As I call him up he comes not alone. A troop of our gay 
and dear comrades surround him as formerly when we met 
unon that happy Hill. They stand together once more in that 

3 



34 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



sweet and exhilarating air, their brows bathed in the sunlight 
of those departed summers, piercing the heavy foliage of oak, 
hickory and poplar. A prospect now so distant, of course, 
presents their persons only in the perspective, and it is not so 
much the special features of any particular object that we enjoy 
as the blended effect and impression of the whole. McPheet- 
ers was a principal figure in college society from 1838 until 
1 84 1. He joined our class as a sophomore, and had pre- 
viously been well drilled in mathematics, for which branch of 
study he manifested a marked partiality. He was not so pro- 
ficient in the ancient languages, especially, as I recollect, in 
Greek. He was not a student, particularly in the latter part 
of the course, and even in his favorite study was irregular as 
to the merit of his recitations. When some passage in Analyti- 
cal Geometry or the Calculus attracted him he would make a 
brilliant display before the class, setting off his demonstration 
by an artistic figure and a lettering extremely neat and tasteful. 
I recall nothing else special in regard to his connection with 
the text books. I suppose that the general judgment of his 
teachers, notwithstanding their ex-officio inclination to slight all 
who do not compete for honors, was, that he possessed intel- 
lectual ability and activity of a high grade, and such intelli- 
gence and force of character as, with his other qualities, plainly 
marked him for future eminence. It was amongst his fellows 
that his position was most remarkable. Nervous in tempera- 
ment, brilliant, witty, tender of heart, and ' of a spirit great as 
Caesar's,' he was the knot of the leading social circle in college, 
and gave a tone to the whole community, which, even when 
counter to the views of the authorities, was by them respected, 
and occasionally deferred to. Although upon excellent terms 
with the Faculty, he was regarded by them as the leader of the 
opposition. The traditional reputation of the ' Second passage 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



35 



of the south end of the West Building ' suffered no disparage- 
ment whilst in the keeping of < Sam Brown.' Indeed, it was 
rather exalted and somewhat glorified when to the liberty 
and free speech of the past was added that literary flavor and 
wit which, under him, distinguished the protest of the under- 
graduates. 

" In our literary society (the Dialectic) McPheeters was a 
power. Even in that connection he was hardly a student. 
His essays in writing were generally brief, and so also his 
speeches in debate. I well recollect his declamation — always 
very earnest, almost rapt, his soul pouring from his eyes, 
and his voice stirred with emotion. Outside of the West 
Building, at a distance of a few yards, was a spot deeply 
shaded by three or four large oaks. To this place chairs and 
benches were carried, and upon fine afternoons crowds of 
youths, strangers as yet to care, assembled to enjoy the com- 
pany of McPheeters. Here, upon the spur of the occasion, the 
oddest dramas were gotten up with rarest impersonations, and 
unrestrained and innocent merriment reigned supreme. Of all 
this he was the animating spirit, and it was all the overflow of 
his natural temperament, for he never used liquor. He was 
addicted too much to the pipe, but that was his only solace or 
stimulant. 

" I will add no more. I see him now passing from the South 
Building to the West. He wears a summer gown, his shoes 
are untied, his step is rapid, his feet are turned in, and his nose 
in air. Some one hails Sam Brown cordially from a win- 
dow, and he responds as cordially. He meets President 
Swain, pleasant words pass, a jest and repartee, and then a 
hearty laugh. Before the echo dies away they, have disap- 
peared." 

McPheeters graduated at the University of his native State 



36 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'pHEETERS, D. D. 



in June, 1841. He returned home and began the study of law 
with Charles Manly, Esq., which he prosecuted for more than 
a year. Early in January, 1842, an interesting state of things 
began to prevail in the Presbyterian Church in Raleigh, and 
many were united to it. The journal says : " Among those 
who at that time obtained a hope were my two sisters, Susan 
and Catherine, and myself, on Sunday night, January 30 ; and 
on the 6th day of March, 1842, some twenty of us united with 
the Church, under the pastoral charge of the Rev. Drury Lacy." 

Dr. S. J. P. Anderson, of St. Louis, furnishes interesting 
particulars in regard to his conversion : 

"My long and intimate acquaintance with Dr. McPheeters 
enabled me to get a view of his inner life permitted to few. 
In frequent conversations I gathered the facts which I desire 
now to record touching his great change : 

" Although brought up piously by parents noted for the 
faithfulness and consistency of their Christian deportment, he 
grew up to early manhood without making a profession of 
religion, and rather remarkably free from those serious im- 
pressions which arise almost irresistibly in a godly house. 
His buoyant hilarity of disposition and his inexhaustible fund 
of anecdote, coupled with a really genial nature, made him a 
most fascinating companion — the joy and pride of every social 
circle. And no doubt his acceptableness as a companion 
helped to render him insensible to those serious thoughts 
which spontaneously suggest themselves to every well in- 
structed youth. 

" At all events, his college career was passed before he found 
Jesus, or rather was found of Him. He was never addicted 
to vice. Indeed, he was intrinsically too much of a gentleman 
to fall into those gross indulgences which have so great an at- 
traction for young men gathered together in College. But in 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



37 



all innocent mischief and frolic he was a leader. At the same 
time, however, he was keenly alive to the dangers of the popu- 
larity which he enjoyed. At one time he discovered that at 
social parties he was solicited to drink wine for the very pur- 
pose of inducing him to talk freely and pour out his stories of 
wit and repartee for the gratification of his associates. The 
discovery at once put him on his guard, and he became care- 
fully abstemious. The impression thus made was deepened 
and confirmed by an incident which occurred at an evening 
party of young men assembled in one of the rooms of the Col- 
lege. They had indulged freely (but not to intoxication), and 
late at night he retired to rest and soon fell into a profound 
sleep. From this he awoke with a burning thirst, and groped 
his way in the dark to the water pitcher, which was covered 
over with ice. Dashing his hand through the frozen covering 
he lifted the pitcher to his lips, and drank, what he thought, the 
sweetest draught his lips had ever tasted. He determined to 
impart his discovery to his boon companions. He, therefore, 
immediately awakened them from their slumbers and urged 
them to drink from his pitcher, saying, ' It is the best drink I 
ever tasted, and the only one I will hereafter take.' And the 
vow, made under these singular circumstances, he faithfully 
kept. From that time wine and spirits were used by him only 
as a medicine. This anecdote, rightly apprehended, will throw 
a strong light on the character he had formed in early youth — 
exquisitely sensitive to the pleasures of social indulgence and 
yet heroically able to restrain the gratification of his appetites. 
This was a good index of his after life. 

" He left the College after graduation, and returning home 
to Raleigh entered at once on the study of the law, having 
through all his course maintained the appearance of a light- 
hearted, jovial and remarkably social young man; and yet he 



3« 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



had not been without occasional visitations ot remorseful 
seasons, although these periods of sober reflection were care- 
fully concealed from his companions. Sometimes, after an 
hour of immense hilarity in conversation, he would retire into a 
forest near the University buildings and fall upon his knees and 
in an agony of compunction implore God to pardon his foolish 
forgetfulness of his high and sacred duties to Him. But these 
visitations were short as well as few and far between, and he 
returned to his worldly career with a new zest. 

" Soon after commencing the study of law there was held in 
Raleigh a protracted meeting, during which considerable inter- 
est in sacred things was manifested. McPheeters, however, was 
unimpressed, and also avoided the meetings. Sitting one day 
in his office, reading Blackstone, he saw his pastor, Rev. Drury 
Lacy, D. D., approaching. At once divining the object of 
his visit, he put a mark in the volume, and with a feeling of 
irritation and resentment prepared for the interview. There 
was another clergyman assisting in the meeting whom he did 
not particularly like, and, as his visitor approached, he heartily 
wished that it had been the ' other one,' whom he would have 
soon sent about his business with very little apparent fruits 
from what McPheeters then considered a rather impertinent 
and certainly very annoying intrusion on his studies. But he 
could not wound his gentle, loving and noble hearted pastor, 
and so he braced himself to sustain the shock as best he might. 
Dr. Lacy talked to him, as he knew so well how to talk, about 
the concerns ot his soul, but no impression was made. The 
young student listened attentively and respectfully, but coldly, 
to these admonitions and exhortations. Seeing he was accom- 
plishing little, the pastor w T isely closed the interview by making 
the request that his young friend would devote one-half hour 
to serious thought and self-examination on the great theme 



MEMOIR OF S. E. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 39 

that he had been pressing on his attention. The request 
seemed a reasonable one, and he readily made the promise 
required. With his punctillious sense of honor he kept his 
engagement, and devoted the half hour to the solemn question 
of his duty to God and himself. It was the turning point of 
his life — the crisis of his immortality. Blackstone was never 
reopened by him again. So far as he was concerned, that book 
mark is there still. His reflections aroused him to an awful 
sense of his sin and danger, and with all his soul he began to 
seek the Savior whom he had so long neglected ; but, although 
so well instructed from the fireside, the Sunday School and the 
pulpit, his soul was in utter darkness. The Bible had no light, 
and prayer brought no relief. He would repeat to himself the 
questions and answers of the Catechism, which had always 
seemed to him so clear in their delineations of the way of life, 
but they did not convey an idea to his tortured mind or a hope 
to his despairing soul. 

" He had a very dear friend (thought still to be irreligious) 
who after graduation had remained as tutor in the University. 
He determined to visit him and see if his genial talk, which had 
so often beguiled him to cheerfulness, would not again avail to 
restore his former equanimity, and thus give him back that 
false peace which he had once enjoyed. He at once set out 
for Chapel Hill and found his friend; but, to his dismay, 
Charles Phillips, the associate of his college days, had gone 
before him to the cross of Christ and there had found Him who 
gives peace. But his friend could not tell him comfortingly 
and effectually what he should do to be saved. His soul was 
as dark and despairing as before. He returned home thus 
thrown back upon himself ; and then, as he wandered lost in 
thought amid mazes of doubt, Christ met him, revealed the 
way of life to the 6 heavy laden,' and filled his soul with the 



40 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



peace that passeth understanding. And then he found, to use 
his own words, ' the plan of salvation was so simple that he 
had nearly passed through it before he knew that he had 
entered the gate.' 

" From that time onward the religious life of McPheeters was 
remarkably consistent, and his path, like that of the dawn, 
shone more and more till the perfect day. 

"Toward the end of August, 1843, the young law student 
left Raleigh for Princeton, New Jersey, with a view of joining 
the Theological Seminary in that place. ' A man's heart devis- 
eth the way, but the Lord directeth his steps.'" 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



41 



CHAPTER III. 

SEMINARY LIFE. 

McPheeters has now entered fairly upon the study of theol- 
ogy. Nor is there any lack of information in regard to his 
habits and character at this particular period. For, beside the 
vivid recollection of friends, there exists a register of events 
and personal experiences carefully recorded by himself. In 
addition, therefore, to the testimony of others, it will be a mat- 
ter of interest to introduce, here and there, a few extracts from 
the journal. 

" Princeton, Oct. 24, 1845. — To-day I purchased a blank 
book, in which I intend to keep a short diary of passing events ; 
and as I find many circumstances escape my mind, which, al- 
though not of much interest in themselves, yet are such as I do 
not wish entirely to escape me. Besides, it is well to keep some 
note of time, and daily to settle one's accounts of loss and profit, 
so that to-morrow may not have to discharge the debts of to- 
day." 

" 1845. — Nov. 29, Saturday. — Attended no recitation this 
day, as we had no question to read in theology. Indeed, I 
did very little to-day in the way, of study, for which I have 
some stings of conscience. I hope I may be forgiven." 

" December 21, Wednesday. — Attended a called meeting 
of the committee on sailors, soldiers and Africans. Resolved 
to try and do better in the ensuing year than I have done. 
Resolved to be more diligent in reading of the Sacred Scrip- 
tures. Resolved to try and live better in every respect." 

" 1846. — January 2 and 3 (Friday and Saturday). — 



42 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



Went over and had a conversation with Dr. Alexander on the 
subject of preaching to the negroes. He is anxious I should 
go to Petersburg for that purpose, and I am disposed to give 
the matter a very serious consideration." 

" Returned home to Raleigh, North Carolina, May 29. Sab- 
bath. June 7, made some remarks at the monthly concert. To- 
night, preached my first sermon (if one who is not licensed 
can be said to preach) to the people of color in the session 
room of our church. Subject : The Christian a pilgrim. — Heb. 
xi. 13. Notice was only given to-day, but we had a crowded 
house of very attentive listeners. As we have very few colored 
people connected with our Church, I suppose it was principally 
curiosity that brought them. Oh ! for more of the Spirit of 
Christ to love to preach the gospel to the poor." 

" Sabbath, June 21. — Held religious services in the session 
room this evening for the colored people — room crowded, and 
the assembly solemn and attentive. I tried to press upon them 
the duty of building upon Christ as the only foundation, from 
parable of the two builders, in Matt. vii. 24-27 — much assisted 
in preparing, but not so in the delivery." 

" June 29. — Held religious services again this evening for 
the colored people in the session room, and had a house full. 
Spoke from John xii. 21 — ' Sir, we would see Jesus/ The au- 
dience seemed to listen." 

" July 12, Sabbath. — Last Sabbath was the monthly concert 
of prayer, Dr. Wilson and Mr. Gilchrist present, and a pretty 
full meeting. This evening I again held religious services for 
the colored people. Spoke from Luke xix. 41-42 — Christ 
weeping over Jerusalem. Audience not as large as the night 
before — exceedingly hot. I did not talk with much satisfac- 
tion to myself. The oil was not beaten enough for a bright 
light. Mr. Lacy present." 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



43 



" July 15, Wednesday. — This being the day appointed for 
an adjourned meeting of the Presbytery of Orange to meet in 
Hillsboro to examine me for license, Mr. Lacy and myself left 
for that place on the morning of this day in a carriage which 
Mrs. Devereux kindly loaned us. We arrived in Hillsboro 
about seven o'clock p. M., and drove up to the house of Dr. 
Wilson. The Presbytery met at the session rooms. Present — 
Dr. Wilson, Messrs. Bur well, Lynch, Lacy and Hughes, minis- 
ters ; C. Phillips and Dr. Long, elders. The Presbytery soon 
adjourned to meet at Dr. Wilson's house, at which place an 
examination took place on the Latin, Greek and Hebrew lan- 
guages. Spent the night at Mr. Ash's. Next day (Thursday) 
examined in the morning on Natural Theology, &c, until ten 
o'clock. Presbytery then gave me a recess until eleven to 
prepare my sermon. At eleven I preached in the church. 
Text : Rev. xxii. 17, last clause. After dinner my examination 
was resumed in Mr. Burwell's study, and concluded in the af- 
ternoon. Mr. Lacy preached at night. After preaching, Mr. 
Hughes, the Moderator of the Presbytery, proposed to me the 
constitutional questions, and licensed me to preach the ever- 
lasting gospel." 

" Friday, July 17. — I went to Chapel Hill before break- 
fast with Ch. Phillips; remained there the rest of the day; vis- 
ited Dr. Mitchell." 

" Sabbath, July 26. — Preached for the first time, this after- 
noon, in the Presbyterian Church, of this place (Raleigh). 
The congregation rather smaller than usual, owing to a camp- 
meeting in the vicinity. Text: Rev. xxii. — last clause of 17th 
verse. I had a cold, and for various reasons seemed to de- 
liver my message with very little power." 

" Sabbath, August 2. — This evening made a short mission- 
ary address, in which I tried to show why it is we take so little 



44 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



interest in the affairs of missions : proved it to be a want of in- 
terest in religion itself." 

Dr. C. Phillips, of Davidson College, North Carolina, says : 
"The years 1843-4, which we spent together at Princeton, fur- 
nished me with more opportunities for associating with McPhee- 
ters than I had before or have had since. I knew him only by 
reputation until he joined the sophomore class at our University, 
in July, 1838. While at College his associations and mine did 
not bring us together as intimates. His forte was mathematics. 
Yet his attention to that was desultory. His companions were 
too idle to let him study much. I have known him to weep 
while at Princeton over the folly that marked his college life. 
He thought while at Chapel Hill that he was to be a lawyer, 
and that the languages would be of but little use to him. So 
he neglected what would have been to him in after life of in- 
estimable service. He did not sow beside all waters, not know- 
ing w T hich would prosper. He was a very influential member 
of our class and of our society — the Dialectic. He was ready 
in debate, fluent, abundant in illustrations, and fond of humor- 
ous sallies. So he was, at all times, excellent company. No 
man in our class was more generally respected or more par- 
ticularly beloved by his associates. 

" Ours were turbulent times at the University. The students 
w r ere frequently riotous, and there w r ere grievous dissensions and 
lamentable schisms in the two societies. Sam McPheeters was 
not thought to be on the side of law and order by the Faculty 
or by the soberer students. He was not dissipated or riotous 
himself, but his companions were. But when we (perhaps 
among the most unlikely members of our class) were afterward 
together preparing to preach the gospel of truth and soberness 
— all this was changed. Sam was still fond of an argument, 
and would often convulse us with an illustration or a simile. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



But there was no trace of his former (to some factious) dispo- 
sition. His was then a lovely specimen of a heart subdued 
by grace. We helped each other. I him, by my book knowl- 
edge; he me, by his ingenuity and originality. Oh! how he 
mourned over misspent hours at school and at college. But 
by his dogged resolution he did much to retrieve his losses. 

" I learned to love him very much for his amiability, and to 
admire him for the spiritedness of his efforts. I have never 
known but one Sam McPheeters. His piety was deep, solemn 
and sincere, and full of cheerfulness. His natural bent of mind 
was toward funny views of things around him. 

"When Professor Addison Alexander was drilling us into the 
pronuciation of Hebrew, Sam, whose tongue was stir! and lips 
thick, was almost in despair. ' He knew the things by sight, 
but he could not call their names? Professor Alexander used 
to read the Hebrew for us, at first slowly, then mpre rapidly, 
then he would go on cracking away a mile a minute. ' How 
do you get on McPheeters ? ' ' Phillips, when he calls out 
verse seven I break for verse eight, and set for him / ' . This 
securing Hebrew sounds, as hunters do deer, was^too much 
for my gravity, and secured for me a reproving look from the 
then awful professor. After I left Princeton we corresponded 
frequently and regularly till he went to St. Louis. He got 
remiss in writing, and so, with mutual regrets, and without 
design, we ceased to communicate directly with each other. 
I was always sure that he would do a good work in our Mas- 
ter's vineyard, and I thank God that he enabled my old friend 
to do it. The account of his death was read by our Prof. 
Anderson here to our students, at our weekly prayer meeting, 
with marked effect. I thank God that I knew Sam. McPhee- 
ters, and pray that more of his spirit may rest on us." 

Dr. A. A. Hodge, of Alleghany City, writes : 



46 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



n I am rejoiced to hear that you propose to prepare a 
memoir of that peerless man and Christian minister and friend, 
Samuel B. McPheeters. I would be, indeed, more than glad, 
if it were in my power, to contribute to the undertaking any , 
material aid. But, although I have never ceased to thank 
God for the privilege of having known and loved him, our per- 
sonal contact continued only three years in Princeton Seminary, 
and in the quarter of a century which has elapsed since then I 
have seen him but one single hour, during the sessions of the 
General Assembly, in Philadelphia, in 1853. Because of my 
dilatoriness, also, we seldom corresponded, so that I possess no 
illustrative facts or incidents to relate, only an imperishable 
remembrance of one of the most graceful human beings, in 
both the natural and the supernatural senses of the word, that 
I have ever known. He was older than some of us. His 
earlier years he had confessedly not improved as a scholar, and 
he had not yet acquired a smooth and equable use of all his 
powers in the study of books and in the fixed routine of class 
exercises; and yet he stood eminent among his classmates for 
a singularly conscientious, diligent and successful discharge of 
all the duties and improvement of all the advantages of his 
seminary course. 

" Beyond any other man that I ever knew, in any seminary, 
McPheeters had the singular faculty of attaching the respect 
and affection of all his fellow students of every grade of culture, 
variety of character, and of every section of the land. He 
stood, facile priiiceps, as the best beloved of all his cotempo- 
raries. In an inner circle of personal friends, to which it was my 
happiness to be attached, adorned by such men as Charles Phil- 
lips, Wm. M. Scott and B. T. Lacy, he was also the attractive 
center and common bond. How beautiful to all of us who sur- 
vive does he appear in the back-look, in his un faded, early 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



47 



manhood, in the matchless sweetness ot his disposition, the 
many sidedness and attractiveness of his magnetic nature, and 
in the delightful eloquence of his discourse. His moral nature 
was as exquisitely pure and ethical as a woman's, while he was 
at the same time eminently manly in the breadth of his under- 
standing and the force of his character. The recollection of 
him brightens all the associations of our youth, and now that 
he has gone before us, the thought of him adds new attractions 
to our heavenly home. He is, doubtless, greatly changed and 
improved ; nevertheless, all the personal and peculiar charac- 
teristics of McPheeters need less modification to render them 
congruous with the associations of Heaven than those ot any 
other of our friends. His memory is very precious to us now, 
and the anticipation of reunion with him cheers the onward 
way." 

The Rev. B. T. Lacy, D.D., an associate at Princeton and 
a friend in after days, records the following impressions : 

" In the autumn ot 1843, and at the opening of the session 
of Princeton Theological Seminary, the writer first met with 
Samuel B. McPheeters. He had preceded him about ten days. 
The day after my arrival he called and delivered a letter of 
introduction from an uncle — Rev. Drury Lacy, D.D., of Ra- 
leigh, N. C, his beloved pastor and his warmly attached friend. 
The impression made in the first interview is well remembered ; 
his kind and cordial manner and his courteous and gentlemanly 
bearing at once commanded respect and won regard. The foun- 
dation was then laid for that firm and lasting friendship and for 
that sincere and tender affection which was cherished for him 
when living, and with which his memory is regarded when dead. 
The writer instantly recognized a congenial spirit ; he felt sure 
that he had met with one among the strangers in whom he 
could confide and with whom he could sympathize. These 



48 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



first impressions were more than realized; our intercourse be- 
came almost immediately intimate and confidential. During 
the stay of three years at Princeton, an intimacy was formed 
with many classmates and fellow-students, and a warm attach- 
ment existed for them, but the first place in affection was 
assigned to him, and that position he maintained to the day 
of his death. After a few months, arrangements were made so 
to occupy our apartments that one should be used as a sitting- 
room and study, the other as bedroom. While this arrange- 
ment added greatly to social enjoyment, it interfered somewhat 
with the privacy essential to the most successful application to 
study. But on the review it is not to be regretted, for it is felt 
that a full compensation for every disadvantage was offered in the 
association with a companion of his spirit. The intercourse was 
without reserve and without concealment; the heart ot each 
opened to the other with the fulness and freedom which consti- 
utedthe perfection of a most delightful and confidential Christian 
fellowship. The knowledge gained of his character was necessa- 
rily full and accurate, and the better he was known the more he 
was loved. His disposition was so affectionate and sympa- 
thetic that it was essential for him to have some one with whom 
he could communicate and in whom he could confide. With 
all his manliness of character and inflexible integrity ot nature 
there was a womanly gentleness which made him dependent 
upon his friends. Firm and strong as the unyielding oak in 
the midst of danger and in the defense of truth, yet in the time 
of repose and in the hours of quiet his heart threw out its 
tendrils like the clasping vine and sought support. Shortly 
after this acquaintance began he related two characteristic inci- 
dents which occurred during the first week after his arrival in 
Princeton. The reserve of the students in their intercourse 
while they were yet strangers, and the necessarily formal and brief 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



49 



interviews which professors could afford to give at the time he 
called upon them and presented letters of introduction, pro- 
duced a depressing effect upon his sensitive and sympathetic 
nature. He felt lonely and sad, far from home and in a cold 
and ungenial clime. In this mood he left his room, pitcher in 
hand, for the pump in the seminary yard, where he found an 
old negro woman, in the employ of the steward, who promptly 
and politely offered to fill his pitcher for him. When she took 
it into her hands she remarked, i This pitcher needs a good 
washing with hot water,' and stepped into the kitchen for the 
purpose. Returning in a moment she drew the water and 
handed the thoroughly cleansed vessel into his hands. This 
slight circumstance, occurring just at that time, so touched his 
heart that, choked with sudden emotion, and with tears starting 
to his eyes, he was scarcely able to express his thanks for her 
kindness. On entering his room he deposited the (to him) 
precious pitcher of water and hastened to the nearest dry goods 
store, which was a half mile off, where he purchased the mate- 
rial for a suitable dress, and carrying it immediately around to 
the kitchen door, called for the old woman. He greatly 
astonished her by saying, 6 here is a present for you ; you have 
done the first kind act for me that I have received since I came 
to this place.' Said she, ' that was nothing; just to fill your 
pitcher with water for you!' He replied, 'it was a great deal 
to me ; you did more than you knew of, aunt — it was water to 
a thirsty soul, and you must take that dress and wear it, for 
you know our Savior said the cup of cold water shall not be 
without its reward.' Incidents such as this reveal the true char- 
acter. 'Like windows in the breast, they enable you to look in 
and see the workings of a pure and generous heart, and 
often disclose more than a volume of mere statistical biography. 
" Among his letters of introduction from Dr. Lacy there was 
4 



5° 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



one to the Rev. Benjamin H. Rice, D. D. — clarum et venerabile 
rumen — who was at that time the pastor of the Princeton Church. 
Some delay occurred before the letter was delivered. When 
he called and presented it, Dr. Rice received him in the most 
cordial and affectionate manner, as a father might a son. Said 
he, ' I knew your father and your mother long before you were 
born. , And still holding his hand in both his, he said: < Come, 
sit down, Sam, and tell me about your mother/ This simple 
and familiar mode of address went right to his heart and un- 
sealed its fountains. When referring to the occasion, he said 
that his emotions almost prevented him from sustaining the 
conversation or answering the numerous questions which were 
kindly put to him. That interview formed the happy intro- 
duction to the most intimate and delightful intercourse with 
the warm-hearted and highly cultivated family of Dr. Rice, 
where he was a regular and welcome visitor as often as every 
week of his stay at Princeton. 

" His social disposition and kind and easy address soon 
made him acquainted with his fellow students, and enabled 
him readily to secure their esteem and affection. No man 
in the Seminary added so much to the social enjoyment of 
the fraternity. He was so true a gentleman, possessed of 
such cordial and winning manners, with such a constant flow 
of kind and genial humor, and, at the same time, with 
such simple and unaffected piety, that it is not surprising 
he was a general favorite. He was the most universally 
beloved and the most popular man in the Seminary. In the 
beginning of his course he was embarrassed by serious diffi- 
culties. He had not been for a great while a member of 
the Church, and much of his time, when at college, had been 
spent in a careless and idle, though not in a positively dissi- 
pated manner. Hence his preparation for the Seminary classes 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 51 

was deficient. This he never ceased to regret and to mourn 
over with the deepest contrition. His deficiencies, however, 
which were not greater than those of the average of his class- 
mates, he was disposed in his humility greatly to exaggerate. 
Not unfrequently he became disturbed in regard to the genu- 
ineness of his call to the ministry, and in the most painful, 
thorough and prayerful manner would re-examine the whole 
subject, and decide the important question anew. His con- 
science was so sensitive, his humility so profound, and his 
fear of presumption so great that he was often in deep distress. 
At times he almost came to the conclusion that it was his duty 
to leave the Seminary. On such occasions his friends became 
greatly concerned, for, beside their clear conviction that he was 
mistaken as to his duty, they could not consent to give him up. 
After the whole subject was discussed in the most serious and 
candid manner, his conclusion would always be the same in 
the end. 6 Well,' he would say, < I will remain and study 
through the course; I may be able to preach to the colored 
people, and do some good among them.' And to them he did 
give the first fruits of his ministeral life, and for the spiritual 
interest of that class of the population he ever lelt the deepest 
concern. He suffered much from too great sensitiveness, 
which was constitutional, and at times almost morbid in its 
character. The speaking and preaching exercises, which were 
conducted in the presence of a professor and the body of the 
students, gave him serious trouble. As the students were 
expected to offer criticisms, he complained that he had no 
audience to speak to, and could not address a company of men 
who felt no sympathy with him or his subject, and who were 
watching with critical eyes all his defects. During the first two 
years he was seldom able entirely to complete the delivery of 
his address. At such times he seemed to suffer as from a 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



' wounded spirit,' and could scarcely bear it. In his first 
attempts to address audiences in the surrounding neighbor- 
hoods, though usually very happy and impressive on such 
occasions, he sometimes lost his self-possession and was sorely 
mortified. I recall an instance in which he had made elab- 
orate preparation, and tQok with him a carefully prepared 
syllabus or skeleton of his discourse, to which he frequently 
referred during his long and solitary walk to the Rocky Hill 
neighborhood. Unconsciously he had perfectly transferred to 
his memory all the divisions and subdivisions of his subject just 
as he had them written down. When he rose to speak, suddenly 
losing his self-command, he proceeded with a rapid utterance 
to speak off the syllabus, verbatim, which consumed about 
three minutes of time,, and then took his seat in complete dis- 
comfiture. This occurred at an evening service and about 
three miles from Princeton. He had expected to remain for 
the night at the house of a friend. Imagine the surprise when, 
pale and exhausted, his feet covered with snow, he burst into 
the room at a late hour. His countenance indicated the deepest 
distress, and in answer to inquiries, he only persistently and 
sadly declared he would leave the Seminary on the next morn- 
ing. And, indeed, his mind was so far determined upon it that 
he prepared a note of explanation for Dr. Alexander, which he 
requested to be delivered after his departure. Argument and 
expostulation were used with him for hours that night to no 
effect, until, with a little impatience, he was told that he ought to 
go — that a man who had no more faith and resolution than to 
give up the cherished purpose of his life and his settled con- 
victions of duty for one failure, and that of the most natural 
kind, and not likely in that form to occur again, was not 
worthy to enter the ministry, for he was not prepared to make 
any sacrifices for his Savior. The offer was then made to 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



53 



assist him in packing his trunk. He said : ' No ; I am willing 
to make any sacrifice for my Savior, and I will continue to try 
to preach, if it kills me.' He was one of the most genuinely 
sincere and unaffectedly humble men ever known. His hu- 
mility sometimes led him to a self-depreciation which was 
injurious while it was unjust. His success in his studies before 
he completed his course, especially in the department of didactic 
theology, in which he excelled, served to encourage him, and 
when he entered upon the active duties of the ministry the 
high appreciation of his services by others gave him a fairer 
estimate of himself and inspired him with greater confidence. 
He related an amusing illustration of his surprise at the value 
set upon his preaching shortly after he entered upon his labors 
among the colored people in Virginia. The Rev. Jesse S. Armi- 
stead, D.D., came from his charge in Cumberland county to 
preach at a sacramental occasion, in a church in Amelia county, 
and not far from the field of McPheeters' labors. There being 
some interruption in his appointments on that Sabbath, he 
went over on Saturday morning to attend the meeting and hear 
Dr. Armistead, who had a well-deserved reputation as a most 
impressive and able preacher. Dr. Armistead insisted upon 
his preaching, to which McPheeters most strenuously objected, 
declaring that he could not preach — that he was the preacher 
to the black people, and that he had been put to preach to 
them because he was not fit to preach to the whites. But Dr. 
A. would not regard his excuses, said he must preach once, 
and forced him to occupy the pulpit that morning. In his 
account of it, he said that he had a carefully prepared sermon 
in which his own heart had been deeply interested, and which 
had produced a strong impression upon his colored audience 
the Sabbath before. He preached it with great earnestness 
and tenderness; a decided impression was made upon his 



54 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



hearers, and the sympathetic nature of old Dr. Jesse S. Armistead 
was moved to tears. At the close of the service he arose and 
said, ; The dear brother who had preached the precious gospel 
with so much power and sweetness to them that morning would 
preach again that night, and also on Sabbath morning and 
Sabbath night.' When he sat down, McPheeters, perfectly 
aghast, seized his arm, exclaiming, ' What have you done that 
for?' Said Dr. A., in his characteristically rough and jocose man- 
ner, 'What did you tell me that lie for, and say you couldn't 
preach ? ' It was with great difficulty that he could get off from 
a portion of the work thus unceremoniously cut out for him, 
having to consent to preach the sermons at night. 

" His application to study throughout his seminary course 
was faithful and diligent. He was naturally social and impul- 
sive, and rather restive under the restraints of uniform and 
positive rules ; but in the exercise of a strong determination, 
and especially under the control of the most scrupulous con- 
science, he forced himself to a life of the most consistent 
adherence to duty. He was punctual in his attendance upon 
all the public exercises of the Seminary, as he was faithful 
in private studies and in his secret devotions. The result of 
this fidelity and discipline was a decided improvement in 
his intellectual and in his religious character. There was a 
constant and vigorous growth which marked the progress 
of his development. He highly appreciated the value of 
his instructions, and successfully improved them. The profess- 
ors in the seminar}* inspired him with the greatest confidence, 
and when other sources of evidence were wanting he was will- 
ing to rely upon their authority. He often rebuked, and some- 
times most happily ridiculed, a tendency quite common among 
young men of questioning everything and demanding upon all 
subjects a logical demonstration. His mind was peculiarly in- 



MEMOIR OF 5. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 55 

tuitive in its character. He seized quickly upon what was es- 
sential in the subject, and a simple and clear statement was to 
him more satisfactory than the strongest and most scientific 
logical argument. Indeed, he did not sufficiently value the 
science of logic, and used to maintain that an adroit dialec- 
tician could confuse the mind and disturb the convictions of 
any ordinary capacity. He had some very ingenious syllo- 
gisms and logical puzzles, which he adduced in an amusing 
way to sustain his positions. 

" On all moi'al subjects his intuitive perception of truth was 
very remarkable. In the study of the most difficult problems 
of theology, particularly those possessing a psychological aspect, 
a few of the class, especially Wm. M. Scott and A. A. Hodge, 
both of whom became professors in Theological Seminaries, 
would meet for the comparison of views and for the discussion 
and solution of difficulties. When conclusions were reached 
and subjected to the severest logical analysis, the writer was 
accustomed to say, ' 1 will ask McPheeters' opinion as to the 
truth of that position,' and when his knowlege of such sub- 
jects was questioned, it was replied that he only knew one 
thing about them — he knew whether they were true or false. 
He was never known to fail. Next to Dr. Hodge's invincible 
logic and profound theological knowledge, I placed McPheeters' 
intuitive perception of moral truth. He had no difficulty in 
accepting the doctrines of the Old School Calvinistic theology. 
He said that he felt that they were true, and the plausible ob- 
jections and specious modifications of modern rationalism gave 
him no trouble. He was disturbed by no harassing doubts as 
to God's revealed truth ; his faith was simple and child-like in 
its character. 1 Thus saith the Lord' was ever sufficient for him. 

" His most distinguishing traits were his moral intuition^ his 
conscientiousness and his social disposition. These elements were 



5'3 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



each developed in the highest degree, and were, at the same 
time, so perfectly and harmoniously blended that they consti- 
tuted a character of the rarest excellence. To his associates 
his social nature was, of course, most obvious and most char- 
acteristic. With a quick and instinctive discrimination of the 
characters and tastes of others, he possessed the disposition 
readily to sympathize and an unusual capacity for adaptation. 
Hence he was seldom, if ever, at a loss for topics of conversa- 
tion peculiarly suited and entirely agreeable to his company. 
He put himself to some extent in the place of others, and inter- 
preted their own feelings for them. He seemed not to think 
of himself ; and as he exhibited a generous and unselfish con- 
cern for their feelings and interests, there were excited emo- 
tions of gratitude which readily changed into those of sincere 
regard. There was an entire absence of all calculation. No 
suspicion of intentional or selfish design could, for a moment, 
be entertained. He was always trusted — never suspected, and, 
where the intercourse continued, invariably beloved. The first 
impressions which he made were very favorable. In many in- 
stances he was beloved from the first interview. His sympa- 
thies had the widest possible range, and his capacity of adap- 
tation was of equal extent. He has been seen with the shy 
and timid child, winning it, as by the power of a charm, from 
the mother's arms to his own. It is needless to add that in 
every such instance the mother's heart followed the impulses 
of her child. He possessed the same attractive influence over 
the rudest, roughest and most uncultivated men and boys. He 
recognized whatever latent susceptibility there was in them for the 
kind, the good or the humorous, and, touching it as with a magic 
influence, he drew them into communion with himself. When 
in contact with natures of the highest order, and minds of the 
widest and severest culture, his sympathies brought him into 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



57 



immediate and intimate companionship with them, and seemed 
to inspire him with a knowledge almost equal to their own. 
When in conversation with such men as Dr. Hodge on pro- 
found theological subjects, Dr. Dodd on metaphysical specu- 
lations and art criticism, or Dr. Henry on physical science, he 
appeared to be wonderfully at home and familiar even when 
he acknowledged his almost entire previous ignorance of the 
subjects. His sympathy constituted a ladder, which he could 
let down to those below him, and by which he could as easily 
ascend to those above him. This peculiarity did not escape 
his own notice, and seemed to surprise and perplex him. He 
often maintained, in a half serious, half playful manner, that he 
had no independent, personal and individual character or in- 
tellect of his own, but that he partially lost his identity and 
passed into the condition of those with whom he was in com- 
munication. 

" On one occasion, when he was congratulated on the suc- 
cessful part he had taken in a conversation, when subjects of 
an erudite and difficult nature, and entirely out of the ordinary 
line of his thoughts and studies were discussed, he said: 'I 
don't know anything about them, and did not then; but 
Dodd and Lord were so smart that they mesmerized me. If 
you had seen me with an idiot, I would have been one, too. I 
have always been afraid of idiots, for if I were thrown with 
them I am sure I would soon fall into their condition.' With 
interest and even wonder it has been observed, on a short visit 
in a family, how he would captivate the servants, the little 
children, the young men, the young ladies and the parents, all 
alike and equally. Even where the diversities of intelligence 
and disposition formed the most striking contrasts, he seemed 
as well suited to one as to the other, and that, too, not as he 
intimated, by a sacrifice of his own individuality. That was, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



both as to his opinions and manners, distinctly and decidedly 
preserved. Xo man ever imitated others less, and no man 
ever compromised himself less. Xo matter how complete the 
adaptation of himself to others, or how close the sympathy with 
their emotions or intellects, there was always left the distinct 
and personal substratum of a manly, graceful, generous, ten- 
der, beautiful character, which was McPheeters', and which all 
recognized and loved. 

" In Princeton the large number of young men in attend- 
ance in the College and Seminary, and the limited number of 
families constituting the society of the town, prevented much 
social attention being extended to the majority of the students. 
Many of them leave as much of strangers to the citizens as when 
they came. This was not the case with him. His introduc- 
tions into Princeton society were favorable, and in every 
instance he interested and attracted those with whom he became 
acquainted. At Dr. Alexander's, Dr. Dodd's, Dr. Henry's, Dr. 
James W. Alexander's, Dr. Miller's, and especially at Dr. 
Hodge's and Dr. Rice's he was a most welcome visitor. From 
the writer's relationship with some of those families, and acquain- 
tance with the others, the opportunity was afforded him of 
knowing how much he was esteemed and how highly his 
society was appreciated. The pressure of the week's studies 
was somewhat over by Friday night, and the evening was 
almost invariably spent at the parsonage, where the noble- 
natured and warm-hearted old Doctor presided in his ample 
armchair ; and where his eldest daughter contributed her extra- 
ordinary and fascinating powers of conversation to the enter- 
tainment of the evening ; his eldest son, Rev. John H. Rice, 
D. D., of Franklin, Tenn., drew liberally from his ample stores 
of accurate and varied information ; his second son, A. A. Rice, 
M. D., supplied the quaint and out-of-the-way information 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS. D. D. 



59 



that other people did not possess, with an unlimited amount 
of appreciative laughter. Entire confidence, perfect congeni- 
ality and sincere affection united the group. The conversa- 
tions took the widest range, with the freest and easiest flow, as 
philosophy, theology, poetry, art, general literature, anecdote, 
wit, humor and badinage, commanded the attention and ruled 
the hour. These were to us nodes ambrosio7i(z, in which 
McPheeters' social nature reveled with peculiar delight, and to 
the exquisite pleasure of which he contributed so largely. 

" An illustration of the generous impulses of his heart and 
the peculiar attractiveness of his manner, by an incident which 
occurred, is afforded during a short stay in Staunton, Va., 
where he met »with Commodore Skinner, U. S. N., and his 
family. He had taken up his residence in Staunton for the 
purpose of educating, at the State Asylum, his only daughter, 
who was a deaf mute. She was a most lovely, intelligent and 
fascinating girl of about twelve years of age. Mr. McPhee- 
ters' sympathies w r ere at once aroused, and a deep interest 
excited for her. He extended to her such kind, considerate 
and delicate attentions that she became devotedly attached 
to him, and ever after cherished for him the greatest regard. 
She has never forgotten him, although that interview of a day 
or two was all she ever saw of him. He also made a brief 
visit to Lexington and its neighborhood, where he produced so 
decided and so favorable an impression that persons there love 
him, and talk of his visit to this day, though many of them 
were never permitted to meet with him again. His social 
nature, indeed, seemed to have been complete — an absolute 
and perfect development, possessed of every attractive and 
lovely trait. It appeared to be literally true — ' None knew him 
but to love him ; none named him but to praise.' 

"Mr. McPheeters, as his friends love to remember, possessed 



Go 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



a rare gift of original wit and a peculiar vein of natural humor, 
which gave an additional charm to his agreeable society. 
While he indulged these dangerous gifts, it was in the most 
innocent and playful manner. The shining arrows with which 
his quiver was ever filled never inflicted a wound or left a sting, 
although they always hit the mark. A few specimens of a 
perfectly impromptu character, which still live in the memory, 
may be allowed. Several of the students were talking of the 
probable difficulties they would encounter in their future pulpit 
efforts, and one of them remarked, 'I intend to study the 
Psalms well, and if I am at a loss for a sermon I will give an 
exposition of a Psalm.' Said he, instantly, £ No matter where 
I take my text, I expect to expose a Sain every time I preach/ 

" On returning from a visit, during vacation, to his home in 
Raleigh, X. C, he promptly called upon Dr. Rice and his 
family, and in giving an account of his trip, he stated that he 
had come by Norfolk and taken the boat to Baltimore, and 
suffered severe sickness from the roughness of the bay. Dr. 
Rice pleasantly asked, 1 How did you feel with the sea-sick- 
ness?' Said he, ' Doctor, I felt as if I was living under the old 
Testament dispensation, for I was making heave offerings and 
wave offerings as devotedly as any Jew.' 

" Traveling with him by canal from Richmond to Scottsville, 
Virginia, and anticipating a tedious trip in that now obsolete 
mode of conveyance, I had furnished myself with a few vol- 
umes of light reading, and being absorbed in one of them, the 
conversation was interrupted, so he reluctantly consented to 
try one himself. It proved to be one of the last and poorest 
of James' novels. After some hours of reading, walking for- 
ward upon the deck, he was found on the prow of the boat and 
near enough to the surface of the water to reach it with his 
hand. He appeared to be tired and was yawning, when a 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 6 1 

humorous smile passed over his face, and supposing himself to 
be entirely alone, dipped the paper-backed volume into the 
canal, and as he shook the water out of its pages and turned 
again to read, he said, addressing the book, < Well, I do hope 
you will not be quite as dry now as you have been.' Startled 
by a laugh, he blushed with as much confusion as a modest 
girl. 

" Not unfrequently the writer was the target for the shining 
but bloodless arrows of his wit. Our intercourse and our dis- 
positions were such that we permitted each other the largest 
liberty of attack, and kept up a sort of continual ' free fight/ 
as opportunity offered. I awakened one morning suffering 
from headache and nausea, caused by a temporary attack of 
dyspepsia, which kept me from breakfast and recitation. There 
had been some cases of typhoid fever of a malignant type, and 
I was apprehensive that I had symptoms of that disease. I 
talked a good deal about it, and was quite low spirited until 
near noon, when the headache passed off, leaving a sharp 
appetite for dinner. At the table McPheeters, who sat oppo- 
site, said, in a tone of great sympathy and tenderness, 4 You 
were quite sick to-day, Lacy, and seemed to think you would 
have typhoid fever. I suppose you expect to be sick a long 
time, from the large amount of provisions you are laying up 
for it.' 

" Several of ' our set' were engaged in conversation in our 
room, I being absent. At a turn in the conversation some 
word or expression suggested an indifferent pun or an obvious 
and very commonplace witticism. McPheeters, who saw it, 
exclaimed, ' Now, if Lacy were here he would say so and so, 
and to test it I will call him in.' I came, in my innocency, at 
the summons, and as the parties repeated their remarks, just as 
he had predicted, I fell into the trap and said precisely what he 



62 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



declared I would say. His triumph was complete and his 
enjoyment great. 

" I had, in company with Wm. M. Scott, taken an interesting 
trip, during a vacation, up the Hudson, on Lake Champlain 
(from Burlington by Montpelier, Hanover, the seat of Dart- 
mouth College, the commencement of which we attended), and 
then by Concord, Lowell, Boston, Providence and New York 
City, home. We had met with quite a variety of interesting 
incidents and remarkable characters, which furnished occa- 
sional topics of conversation for months of the session. I 
made the most of it, and called it ' my grand tour/ For a 
long time afterward whenever there was lack of interest or of 
topics in our conversation, McPheeters would say, 6 Come, 
Lacy, here is a good chance for you to put another story upon 
that grand tower of yours. I don't think it is more than fif- 
teen stories high.' 

" In the intercourse of after years, often interrupted by time 
and distance, but frequently renewed, the same traits which 
marked his life at the Seminary exhibited themselves in the 
matured man and the experienced minister. There was al- 
ways a wonderful intermingling of the serious and the playful, 
the pathetic and the humorous. The peculiar features of the 
intercourse at the Seminary, doubtless, gave to these inter- 
views a larger element of the anecdotal than exhibited itself 
in general society. His ordinary deportment was easy, digni- 
fied and serious, and very far removed from flippancy or levity. 
From a number of interviews which live in the memory, and 
on which the mind dwells with peculiar delight, one or two 
may be introduced : He was in attendance on the assembly, 
which met at Indianapolis, as a visitor. Opportunity was thus 
afforded, in the intervals of interesting discussions, for long 
walks and confidential conversation. The past was reviewed 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



C3 



and the providences of God during the years of separation re- 
counted. He had been happy and successful in his pastoral 
work in St. Louis, happy in his family and happy in his friends, 
and was bright and cheerful, full of hope and full of energy. 
He was deeply interested in the progress of the West, the 
growth of the city of St. Louis, the affairs of the Church, and 
the interests of Westminster College — all the evidences were 
furnished of a matured character, and of a highly intellectual and 
moral development. It was evident, too, that he had lost none 
of his characteristic humor and talent for anecdote. A wide 
and varied experience had embraced many amusing incidents 
and added largely to the old stock of anecdotes. A fair ex- 
change was made, which, in that case, was no robbery, as the 
supply of each had been about doubled. 

"It will be recalled with pleasure by a congenial group of min- 
isters, who were also visitors at the Assembly, how, on an occa- 
sion when the supply of anecdotes was exhausted with the rest 
of the company, McPheeters brought out his reserve forces, 
and related two of the most dramatic and charmingly amusing 
stories ever heard — gems of the first water — worthy of the 
Orient, and both, too, incidents of his own personal experi- 
ence. Those who heard him will never forget his account of 
the ' coat ' in which* he once preached, and his first and last 
attempt to administer baptism by immersion. The pen is 
tempted to reproduce them, but the tone, the accent, the ex- 
pression and the inimitable manner are all beyond its power. 

" His fund of anecdote was very great and his manner of 
relating a story unsurpassed ; but he was never betrayed into 
the common and most objectionable fault of admitting anything 
indelicate or irreverent in its character. His humorous and en- 
tertaining stories w r ere all suited to the parlor and fitted for the 
ears of the sensitive and the refined. On that subject, as upon 



64 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



all others, his conscience was his faithful monitor, and he was 
ever scrupulous to obey its instructions and to heed its warn- 
ings. 

" Almost ten years passed away before another interview — 
years of darkness, of dissension and of war in the land — and, 
to him, years of perplexity, persecution, sorrow and disease. 
The manly and graceful form was bent by a painful spinal cur- 
vature, was worn to emaciation, and was prostrate upon a 
couch, where he had been confined for two years. His face 
was thin and marked with the lines of care and suffering; his 
hair and beard, once a dark and beautiful brown, were turning 
white. His whole appearance made a deep and affecting im- 
pression upon the sensibilities of the beholder. He was, how- 
ever, stronger and more comfortable than his appearance indi- 
cated. Perfectly resigned to his Heavenly Father's will, he 
was calm, brave, cheerful and happy. The conversations for 
several days together were continued and most interesting, 
embracing a wide range of topics — providential dealings, re- 
ligious experience, opinions, sentiments, trials, triumphs and 
future hopes, all passed in review. Not unfrequently the old 
humorous way would return, and he would call for some favor- 
ite anecdote or demand a new one ; nor would he hesitate to 
narrate, with all his former zest, some amusing incident which 
had not before been heard. The opportunity was afforded on 
Sabbath for witnessing the remarkable service, which was after- 
ward transferred to the Church. His chamber and the adja- 
cent hall were filled with the members of his congregation, 
composed chiefly of the young, with whom he engaged in most 
delightful religious exercises, embracing most of the best ele- 
ments of the Bible class, prayer-meeting and lecture. It was 
easily understood how the most blessed results had followed 
from these able, instructive and most interesting services. His 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



65 



prayers were especially impressive from their spirituality, fervor, 
humility, pensive beauty and touching pathos. There is a 
strong temptation to enter more fully into the details of that 
wonderful life at Mulberry, and to describe the man of God as 
he rested submissively under his Heavenly Father's afflictive 
hand, surrounded by a devoted people, and nursed by the 
loving care of a faithful wife and affectionate children ; but that 
is the appropriate task of his biographer, and to one having 
such opportunities and so well qualified the precious work 
may be safely entrusted. To the same hands are committed 
all that might bf said in regard to his visit to St. Louis and his 
stay of a month among his dear friends at the house of his 
brother, as well as the mournful and interesting scene when his 
precious dust was laid in its resting place in Bellefontaine Ceme- 
tery; nor will a portrait of his character be here attempted. 
His leading characteristic was his faith, his crowning excel- 
lence was his humble, devoted piety. He ever sought to se- 
cure the same mind in himself which was in Christ Jesus his 
Lord. Love to God and love to his fellow men were the con- 
trolling principles of his life, and these enabled him so well to 
act his part in life and to approach so near to the fulfilling of 
the law. 

" He was brought by grace and sufferings to the possession 
of a heavenly mind — for whatsoever things were true, whatso- 
ever things were honest, whatsover things were just, whatso- 
ever things were lovely, whatsoever things w T ere of good report 
— if there were any virtue, and if there w T ere any praise, he- 
thought on those things. To him rather than to any man we 
have known may be applied the apostolic description of that 
ayafTTj — that holy love. ' He suffered long and was kind, he 
envied not, he vaunted not himself, he was not puffed up, he 
did not behave himself unseemly, he sought not his own, he 
5 



66 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



was not easily provoked, he thought no evil, he rejoiced not 
in iniquity, but rejoiced in the truth. He bore all things, he 
believed all things, he hoped all things, he endured all things.' 

" £ He fought the good fight, he finished his course, he kept 
the faith ; hence there was laid up for him a crown of righte- 
ousness, which the righteous Judge hath given him.' " 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



67 



CHAPTER IV. 

INVITATION TO VIRGINIA MINISTRY TO THE COLORED PEOPLE. 

Mr. McPheeters, as has already appeared in the Diary, enter- 
tained a desire, even while in the Seminary, to make "full proof 
of his ministry " first among the colored people. Immediately 
after his licensure the opportunity occurred; and in reference 
to the call, settlement and labors in Nottaway and Amelia, 
Dr. Pry or furnishes the following particulars : 

" The Presbytery of East Hanover, determined to make a 
faithful effort for the religious instruction of the colored people, 
appointed a committee, of which I was chairman, charged with 
the duty of securing a suitable preacher. A correspondence 
with the Rev. Dr. Archibald Alexander, of Princeton, brought 
to our view Mr. Samuel B. McPheeters, at that time a student 
in the Seminary. My impression is that Mr. McPheeters came 
to us a licentiate of Orange Presbytery, N. C. He commenced 
his labors as a preacher to the colored people of the counties 
of Amelia and Nottaway some time in the year 1846. He 
lived at ' Mountain Hall,' the residence of Dr. James Jones, 
an elder in the Nottaway church. 

Mr. McPheeters adopted the system of plantation preaching 
during the week, and gathered the colored people in some 
church on the Sabbath. He was diligent, faithful and very 
acceptable in his work. No man could have been more popu- 
lar among the people of his charge. All persons, white and 
black, esteemed him most highly and were sincerely attached 
to him. His habits of social intercourse were so remarkably 
pleasant that he was a welcome guest in every family. 



68 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



" After laboring most diligently in his appropriate work for 
about eighteen months, having been invited to take charge of 
the Amelia church, he determined to do so. On Sunday, 
June 10, 1848, at Chinquepin church, in the county of Amelia, 
he was solemnly ordained to the full work of the gospel min- 
istry by the Presbytery of East Hanover. 

" On that occasion Rev. H. V. D. Nevius presided and pro- 
posed the constitutional questions. Rev. T. Pryor preached 
the sermon and delivered the charge to the evangelist. Rev. J. 
D. Dudley made the ordaining prayer. In due time Mr. Mc- 
Pheeters received a regular call to the pastorship of the Amelia 
church, which, however, he never saw his way clear to accent. 
I think his labors in Amelia extended over two years. During 
the whole period of his ministry, both in Nottaway and Amelia, 
he was universally acceptable to all classes, white and black, 
rich and poor. The Church in Amelia did all in their power 
to retain him : but having received a call to Missouri, he felt it 
his duty to go. The people within and without the Church 
parted with him most reluctantly. For myself, I have to say 
that through a ministerial life now not far from forty years in 
duration I have never met with a man whom I more sincerely 
esteemed or more cordially loved." 

Reference will once more be made to the diary : 

"On the 1 st of September, 1846, I left Raleigh for the 
county of Nottaway, Va., in compliance with a call from East 
Hanover Presbytery, through a committee appointed for that 
purpose, to labor as a missionary among the blacks of that and 
the adjoining county of Amelia. When I arrived in the county 
I found Mr. Pryor from home and sick, and being entirely un- 
acquainted with any one else, I found myself at a loss what to 
do. Next day being the day of the county court, I hired a 
horse and visited the seat of justice, in hopes of meeting some 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



6 9 



one whom I should know or might get acquainted with. I 
made the acquaintance of Captain Richard Jones, Mr. Booth 
and Robert Fitzgerald. In a short time Mr. Pryor returned ; 
but the county was so sickly — there hardly being a family in 
which there was not more than half the number down with 
chills and fever — that, upon the advice of Mr. Pryor, I deter- 
mined to go up to Prince Edward's and remain at the Seminary 
until the meeting of Presbytery, in Brunswick county, the first 
of October. 

"Taking the stage at Black's-and- White's, I rode all night, 
and next morning found myself at Farmville; thence taking 
another stage, I was put down within about a mile of the Semi- 
nary. During my stay at the Seminary I was very kindly urged 
by Dr. Graham to remain with him, which I did. The com- 
mencement at Hampden Sidney came off while I was in Prince 
Edward's. We had speeches from Mr. Tazewell, M. D. Hoge 
and President Garland, of Randolph- Macon College. 

" My stay at the Seminary was a very pleasant one. Leav- 
ing the town of Farmville, I came down to Nottaway, by stage, 
in company with Mr. Gildersleeve and a Mr. Kirkpatrick. 
From Black's-and- White's, where the stage stopped, Mr. Gil- 
dersleeve and myself walked over to Mr. Pryor's, at which 
place we were joined, in a day or two, by Hoge; and all of us 
in a few days went over to the meeting of Presbytery, in 
Brunswick, at Concord Church, under the pastoral care of the 
Rev. Mr. Galbraith. The meeting was a small one, owing to 
various causes. At this meeting I made arrangements to en- 
gage in the missionary work before mentioned, under the 
direction of the committee of Presbytery. 

"Since my return from Presbytery I have been making what 
preparations I have been able for the prosecution of my work. 
After consultation with Bro. Pryor it was thought best to con- 



7 o 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



fine my labors to this county almost exclusively, rather than, by 
extending them into Amelia, make the whole plan ineffectual 
by embracing too large a territory. 

" The first of November I came into the family of Dr. James 
Jones to live, and having visited most of the Presbyterian fam- 
ilies, and made such arrangements as suggested themselves, 
I will begin on the first Sabbath of December my regular cir- 
cuit. I have preached, since my arrival in the county, five 
times for Bro. Pryor, three times in the Chapel, two funeral 
sermons, and twice to Dr. Jones' negroes. The prospect for the 
work is, upon the whole, encouraging. In the week ending 
December 13, 1846, on Saturday, noon, I left this place for Mr. 
Freeman Eppes', fifteen miles distant, where I spent the night, 
and remained until about ten o'clock next morning. Was very 
kindly entertained by Mrs. E., in the absence of her husband. 
Sunday morning proved to be dark and cloudy, but having 
made the appointment to preach at Shiloh Church, two miles 
and a half below, I set out for the meeting in a slight rain, and 
found a better congregation than I had expected, although not 
very large. Mr. Win. Bland, his wife and mother, were 
among my auditors. I addressed the assembly from John xii. 
21 — 1 Sir, we would see Jesus;' and took occasion to make 
some remarks suited to a funeral discourse of five of Mr. Eppes' 
negroes. In this section of country every person dying must 
have a funeral discourse preached over them, if it should be ten 
years after the event. This is only advantageous in one re- 
spect : it gives an opportunity of preaching the Gospel. The 
audience was generally attentive. After sermon I went home 
with Mr. Bland. I had some religious conversation with Mr. 
Bland. Although not a member of the Church, I hope he is a 
Christian, and judge that he intends soon to connect himself 
with the Presbyterian Church. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



71 



" Monday ; still rainy, or rather a heavy mist and cold north- 
east wind ; after breakfast set out for Mr. Wills', eight miles 
distant ; reached there about eleven o'clock. Mr. Wills is an 
elder; seems to be a kind man and consistent Christian. 
Preached to his servants, in his hall, some ten or twelve in 
number, from the parable of the Sower, Mark iv. The object 
of this discourse, which I preach at all the plantations this 
week, was to show the importance of the proper attendance 
on the preaching of the Word. Tuesday was a warm, clear, 
spring-like day, until about noon, when it began to rain. Left 
Mr. Wills' at nine o'clock, and reached Mr. Boothe's by eleven; 
Mr. B. from home; remained there until next morning; preached 
to his people, thirty or forty I judge, in his basement story, 
by candle light ; Mr. Archer Jones, brother of Mrs. B., and 
the other members of the White family, present. Mr. Boothe's 
is nearly ten miles from Taylor Wills'. Wednesday, a disagree- 
able morning, but no rain until the afternoon. Left Mr. B.'s 
about 9 a. m., and reached Captain R. Jones' about 10:30, four 
miles and a half from Mr. B.'s ; preached to his servants about 
twelve, in school house; Mrs. Morton, Miss Walker and Miss 
Eleanor Jones present. Thursday morning, rainy ; did not 
leave Captain Jones' until nearly one, the rain having held up, 
for Freeman Eppes', three miles distant ; preached in his dining 
room, basement story, immediately after dinner ; remained until 
nine next morning; rode to Blacks-and- Whites on some busi- 
ness; there received a letter from my friend, J. H. Rice, New 
Orleans, containing an invitation to preach on the plantation 
of Mrs. Ogden, of Louisiana, living several miles from Grand 
Gulf. Mrs. O. appears very anxious to procure a minister, as 
she offered me eight hundred dollars, board, horse, &c. I will 
not, of course, leave my present situation. Returned to Mr. 
Pryor's and took dinner, immediately after which, 2 p. m., set 



7 2 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



out for this place, and reached it just as the sun was setting; 
the roads very muddy ; my labors I find to be very arduous in 
the uncertain state of the weather; upon the whole, encour- 
aged; the planters give me all the assistance I expected, and 
the servants generally attentive. 

"Dec. 21st. — By previous appointment I preached in the 
Baptist church called Nottaway, on Sabbath last, to a mixed 
congregation, principally negroes; had a larger number out 
than I have had on any previous occasion. The Baptist 
brethren have kindly permitted me to preach in their church. 
My text was, Heb. xi. 13, last clause— ' Life as a pilgrimage. L 
The audience generally attentive and silent. Returned home 
to dinner, and after supper preached to Dr. Jones' negroes in 
his old dining-room — Mark iv. 

" On Monday was to have gone to Crawley Jones', but at 
his request postponed it until Friday. Tuesday preached on 
the plantations of Wm. Ward, Robt. Ward and Mrs. "Ward, in 
the shed of the barn ; congregation large and attentive. Next 
day went down to see Captain Perkinson, in Amelia, intending 
to return the next day, but it rained furiously. Friday went to 
C. Jones' and preached to his negroes and part of Wm. and 
Robt. Ward's. 

" Third Week in December. — Sunday preached at the 
chapel, which has been for some time the colored church. It 
was built by Robert Fitzgerald for this purpose, on his land. 
Found no one assembled, and at first gave up the idea of 
preaching; but concluded to do so, as a few assembled. Text : 
Heb. xi. — ' Stranger and pilgrim. Went from church to Bro. 
Pryor's ; remained there Monday. Tuesday preached for 
Robt. Fitzgerald's negroes. These people have a strong dis- 
position to shout. Wednesday went to Colonel Wm. Knight's; 
stayed there until Thursday evening. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



73 



"January, 1847; second week. — Tuesday preached at Mr. 
Ward's quarter, in the barn, to a pretty good congregation; 
but it was very cold — so much so that I could hardly command 
my voice. Tuesday evening I preached again to Dr. Jones' 
negroes. 

" Fourth week in January. — On Saturday morning went 
to court house, expecting to hear the trial of Bob for killing 
Mr. Robinson; but not a sufficient number of magistrates 
present. Continued on to Mrs. Fanny Eppes'; roads in a 
wretched condition — half frozen miid and snow. Took dinner 
with Bro. Pry or and family. After dinner went to Capt. Jones'. 
Sunday preached at Shiloh; a pretty good congregation; sub- 
ject, Repentance; returned and dined with Capt. Jones; 
rode to Butt's ; preached after tea. Next morning rode over to 
T. Will's ; preached at twelve o'clock, dined and returned to 
Capt. Jones' ; preached that night ; next morning rode over to 
Freeman Eppes' ; preached at 3 p. m, and rode to Mrs. Fanny 
Eppes' ; next morning set out for home ; stopped at the court 
house to converse with Bob : found him ignorant, but distressed 
on the subject of religion; returned home. By appointment 
went to Capt. Perkinson's, in Amelia; preached there on Sat- 
urday night. Sunday morning rode up to Mt. Zion and 
preached — Parable of the Builders; congregation a pretty 
good one, and the prospects encouraging. 

"Feb. 21ST-27TH. — Dark, misty, disagreeable day was 
Sunday, but concluded to go down to the chapel and preach, if 
there should be a congregation (there are generally enough 
present to report that the preacher was not there) ; the ride a 
very disagreeable one; found a few at the chapel and more 
coming in. ; preached on Noah's building the ark ; went down 
to Bro. Pryor's and spent the night and part of next day with 
him. That evening (Monday) went to Robt. Fitzgerald's and 



74 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



preached to his people ; next morning rode to Colonel Wm. 
Knight's and preached, after dark, to his people in his hall. 
Wednesday rode over to Col. Knight's, Sr., distant five miles, 
and preached to his family ; Bro. Pryor met me there. Per- 
haps less encouragement in this neighborhood than any other. 

" Feb. 28 — March 6. — I had made an appointment to 
preach on Saturday at 12 o'clock at Mrs. Eppes', but it rained 
so hard that I was prevented from going. After dinner it was 
somewhat more pleasant, and I set out for Col. Eppes' and 
spent the night with him; the roads — mud! mud!! mud!!! 
Xext morning set out for Shiloh, which I reached about 12 
o'clock; found a pretty good congregation in attendance and 
every attention. I hope good will be done among this people. 
I felt more liberty in preaching than usual. After sermon 
went to Capt. Jones' and took dinner. About 3 o'clock set 
out for Mr. Boothe's ; the day has been very cold, windy and 
disagreeable; preached at night to Mr. Boothe's family; the 
congregation appeared to be heavy and listless. Monday 
morning I rode over to Taylor "Wills' ; was encouraged to find 
he had erected a chapel in conjunction with Mr. McQuay, and 
hereafter I am to preach in that. Same evening I returned to 
Capt. Jones' and preached for his people ; the congregation 
very solemn and attentive. From Capt. Jones' rode over to 
Mr. Freeman Eppes' and spent the day with him; quite sick in 
the evening, but made out to preach after supper. Set out 
next morning for home, and reached here after 12 o'clock." 
Rev. D. W. Shanks, of Falling Spring, Va., remarks: 
" He was, as far as I know, universally loved and admired 
as a man and a preacher. He had no enemies. I have heard 
that his preaching did more to attract attention to and build 
up the Presbyterian Church in Amelia than the labors of any 
one else. He gave Presbyterianism a start there. His social 



MEMOIR OF S. E. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



75 



popularity and his pulpit performance drew many to hear him 
who before never entered a Presbyterian Church. Of the 
actual increase in numbers of the Church while he ministered 
there I am not informed. My impression is that there was not 
a large accession to the membership during his ministry. The 
Church, however, became influential and popular, and the way 
was opened for its enlargement under his successors. He left 
there for St. Louis when his prospects for usefulness w r ere 
greatest, and his labors would have soon issued in abundant 
fruit. His name is mentioned now, by those who knew him, 
with a peculiar affection. I believe the love of his friends there 
for him was more tender and affectionate than that which 
ministers generally enjoy. He was exceedingly popular as 
a preacher among the blacks. He was considered in that 
section to be the greatest preacher for negroes that ever lived. 
I suppose few men understood so well the negro character and 
could adapt themselves so readily to its idiosyncrasies. In 
his sermons to them he abounded in illustrations and generally 
gained and kept their attention without interruption, and yet 
did and said nothing unbecoming the place or the master. He 
treated them with politeness and kindness, and had their entire 
confidence. 

" I can tell you a little anecdote which he related to me, 
which will illustrate the confidence and love of the negroes for 
him. There was an old negro, named Hampton (who died 
while I was pastor), who was a member of the Presbyterian 
Church, and in every respect a worthy one. He was unusually 
intelligent and had great influence over the blacks. When 
Mr. McPheeters had accepted the call to St. Louis, and the 
night before he left the county, after he had parted with the 
family with whom he was staying and retired to his room, old 
Hampton went up to say good-bye. With great earnestness 



76 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



he remonstrated against Mr. McPheeters leaving them. But 
rinding that nothing availed, he took him by the hand with 
great tenderness and said : 6 Good-bye, Mas Mac ; the Lord 
sent you to us, but I am mightily afraid the devil is taking you 
away.' McPheeters said this hurt him, and staggered him 
more than everything else said to him by his friends there. 

"He had the uncommon talent of simplifying the truth in 
such a way that these people understood him. That old man 
Hampton had as clear an idea of salvation — yes clearer, I was 
about to say — than six-tenths of the white Christians. It was 
a real pleasure to me to talk with him. So well assured was I 
of the genuineness of his piety and the excellency of his life 
that for his funeral sermon I took Heb. vi. 12, and held him 
up as an example to the flock. I have no doubt that his clear 
views of the plan of salvation were traceable to McPheeters' 
instruction. 

" McPheeters had a great influence over the young, especially 
young men. He was so social and accessible that they felt at 
home with him, and he was so gentle, kind and loving that he 
won their hearts. Indeed, no class could resist his attractions. 
There were two gentlemen in Amelia (one of whom I knew) 
who were highly cultivated, professional men, but irreligious, 
and yet these men sought his company and would talk with 
him for hours.. And although he was thus familiar and jovial 
with these irreligious people, he never lost their respect and 
they never forgot that he was a minister. He had the happy 
faculty of rebuking offenders without giving offense. He told 
me once a little incident that happened while in Amelia which 
would illustrate this if I could recall it in detail. A young 
lady behaved very unseemly at church while he was preaching. 
Some time after he met her at a party. He proceeded to 
relate a parallel case and got her to commit herself, and then 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



77 



applied it. It was all done so good humoredly, and was such 
a happy hit, that the young lady could not take offense, while 
she and others could not but laugh. She acknowledged in- 
genuously her fault, and ever after was a reformed person in 
church. I have no doubt that Lacy can give you the anecdote 
in full. I believe the incident of the dialogue which he held 
with his conscience about shutting a farm gate happened in 
Amelia. Lacy knows this, and it will' illustrate his exceeding 
conscientiousness, whilst his attempt to baptize by dipping 
(which I have heard a friend of his, and an irreligious man, 
there relate) will illustrate another feature in his character, to- 
wit : that in matters indifferent, where his conscience was no t 
engaged, he was ready, for the gospel's sake, to become to the 
weak as weak, and to be made all things to all men, that he 
might by all means save some. This anecdote Lacy can also 
tell you. 

" After his removal to St. Louis he returned once to Amelia 
and preached. I have been told that, after service, the people 
gathered about him and offered him such tributes of tender 
love as have rarely been witnessed. Indeed, as I said before, 
he had no enemies, and warmer friends no man could count. 
The tongue which covered the character of all others with its 
foul slime only uttered his praise." 

Here was a minister qualified to fill exalted station, who, 
in the vigor of young manhood, devoted himself, in conjunc- 
tion with others of like mind, to the religious necessities of the 
humble blacks. In the Carolinas, under burning suns and 
amid blinding sands, toiled the steadfast Jones, while on the 
Virginia plantations, through "mud, mud, mud," tramped the 
pure-minded McPheeters, " with a soul as great as Caesar's." 
Day alter day, hot or cold, wet or dry, the heroic two were at 
veritable work to save the poor negro, and with small pay, or 



7 8 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



prospect of pay, that men could see. And, furthermore, it was 
noted by many, that what these evangelists did do for the slave 
cost pains and sweat. 

Elsewhere work (if we may call it so) of a very different 
sort went on. In curiously constructed apartments, crowded 
with antique furniture, on easy chairs, at desks inlaid with 
pearl — the sun's rays carefully shut off by delicate lattice — sat 
laborers, golden pen in hand, ready to denounce slavery " as a 
covenant with death and an agreement with hell," and " with 
these ivorus" to comfort the ignorant bondman. And it was 
noted, still further, by a few, that such philanthropy as this, 
some how or other, got its wages steadily increased, and from 
year to year the heat and cold were kept in closer quarantine, 
while yonder at the South slaveholding evangelists, for Christ's 
sake and for the sake of souls, were willing to tramp through 
" mud, mud, mud." 

Mr. McPheeters, in preaching to the colored people, usually 
selected a subject that not only justified argument, but opened 
up a field for graphic exposition. On one occasion, the writer 
heard him preach from the story of blind Bartimeus. The 
body of the edifice below was occupied by the blacks, while 
the galleries above were reserved for the whites. At the ap- 
pointed time the young minister made his appearance. His 
very countenance exhibited such sincerity, solemnity and hope- 
fulness that criticism, if it existed, was disarmed from the start. 
The introductory service was charmingly simple. A brief, 
clear and tender exordium established the speaker most com- 
pletely in the heart of the hearer, and then the rags, beggary 
and blindness of Bartimeus were turned over and over again to 
illustrate afresh the wonder and glory of the grace of Christ, 
until, as the preacher advanced, his body swayed under emo- 
tion, while every feature of the face literally glowed with the 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



79 



light. The manner of McPheeters was not only original, but 
wonderfully engaging. His illustrations of truth did not influ- 
ence the understanding simply, but glanced downward, irre- 
sistibly, to the very core of the heart. All classes were reached. 
What affected the servant below reached just as effectually the 
feelings of the master above. Thus it was demonstrated once 
more that the gospel, in its simplicity, is the great power of 
God unto all. The youthful preacher gains the ear of the 
people, not with enticing words of man's wisdom, not with rare 
exhibitions of philosophic discussion, not with any art of the 
practiced rhetorician, but grasping, with steadfast earnestness, 
the sword of the Spirit, the incorruptible Word, he finds this, 
and this alone, mighty through God to the pulling down of 
strongholds. 

The sermon that follows is only a meagre outline of the dis- 
course as it fell from the lips of the preacher : 

THE BLIND MAN RESTORED TO SIGHT— Mark x. 46-53. 

These words tell us ot one of the wonderful works of the Lord Jesus. 
When on earth our Lord did many miracles, and what is remarkable, every 
one of them was intended in some way to help or bless men. He never 
healed an animal. He never brought a dead animal to life. The reason 
was. not that He did not care for animals, but because He came into the 
world to be the Savior of men, and He wished to show by what He did for 
their bodies what He was willing to do for their souls. All the evils that 
have come on our bodies have come from sin. If there had been no sin 
there would have been no blind or lame or sick. Christ came to - - make an 
end of sin ; " and to show that he could and would do it, He made an end 
of the troubles that sin has turned in on the body. He healed the sick, 
cured the lame, gave sight to the blind, and raised the dead. And when 
He did these things, it was as if He said, I can also heal your sin-sick soul, 
open the eyes of your blind hearts, and give you spiritual life. 

In this opening of the eyes of poor, blind Bartimeus, therefore, we may 
learn some very important lessons, for every sinner is, spiritually, in just 
his condition — blind and poor. The sinner may not feel this to be his con- 



So 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS', D. D. 



dition, but it is so, whether he feels it or not. The Lord Jesus tells us of 
some who said they were "rich and increased with goods, and had need 
of nothing, and knew not that they were wretched and miserable and poor 
and blind and naked." To the blind man the world is all dark. He sees 
no beauty in green fields or bright flowers. He may hear others talking 
about these things, and he may talk about them himself, but he sees 
nothing ; all is dark to him. So to the sinner, religion is all dark. He sees 
nothing bright or beautiful in the service of God. He may talk about 
religion as he hears others talk, but he does not understand it ; it is dark to 
him, for he is blind. This is the reason religion is such a gloomy thing to 
sinners. The gospel is not gloomy ; it is full of light and joy and glory. 
But Paul tells us that "the God of this world," that is, Satan, "hath 
blinded the minds of them that believed not, lest the light of the glorious 
gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them." 

As the sinner's case is so much like this blind man's, so he can not do 
better than to act as he did. 

We are told that as Jesus and his disciples and a great number of people 
were coming out of Jericho, "blind Bartimeus, the son of Timeus, sat by 
the highway side begging." 

Happy was it for this blind man that he was so near the place where 
Jesus passed. Had he been on some other road, along which Jesus did 
not pass, he might have lived and died blind. There are places of which 
it may be truly said, it is good to be there — there are places where Jesus 
still passes and blesses. The house of God is one of these places, for 
the Bible tells us "God's way is in the sanctuary." The place of secret 
prayer is another, and it is good for the blind to be there " begging." For 
most of those who keep away from the Church and the place of prayer miss 
Christ and die in their sins. 

As the blind man sat by the wayside he heard the tramp of the multitude, 
and was told by some one that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. No 
doubt he had heard of Jesus before, for the whole country was full of 
reports concerning Him — how He healed the sick and raised the dead. And 
he may also have heard how kind He was to the poor and friendless. It is 
plain that he believed on Jesus, for he called Him Son of David, which 
shows that he believed Him to be the Savior God had promised to send. 

" He began to cry out and say, Jesus, Thou Son of David, have mercy 
on me ! " Mark well this prayer ! It was a very humble one — it was for 
mercy. Mercy is favor shown to those who have no claims, and he 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D, St 

fell: that he had no claims. Many, even among those who are seeking: 
salvation, make a great mistake here. They do not ask for mercy. 
They expect to be saved for something they are to do or feel. Their 
prayer really means — save me for my tears, or, save me for my prayers, 
or, save me for my repentance ; they want to get a claim on God.- 
Not so this blind man. He offered no price for what he wanted ; he felt 
that he was not only blind, but very poor; ' 'he sat by the wayside beg- 
ging." And the sinner is poor and blind, and he, too, must come to Jesus 
begging. We may work our way to hell, but we must beg our way to 
heaven; "for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life 
through Jesus Christ our Lord." 

But it was not at once that the blind man came to the Savior. He had 
some difficulties to overcome, for "many charged him that he should 
hold his peace." And it may be doubted if ever there was one who got to 
the Savior without meeting with difficulties. Many things within and with- 
out say to the soul beginning to call on Jesus for mercy, "hold your peace." 
Satan makes use of false shame or wicked friends, or he puts some hin- 
drance in the way to keep the troubled soul still. Many charged this poor 
blind man to hold his peace. But what did he do? "He cried the 
more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me." He 
would not be hushed ; he was truly in earnest, and all who would be 
saved must be in earnest. "Strive," said Jesus, "to enter in at the strait 
gate." If difficulties are in the way, they must be overcome. Men expect 
to meet difficulties and overcome them in everything else, why not in relig- 
ion ? Whoever got riches or honor or pleasure without being so much in 
earnest as to do all that is necessary to be done. No man can be saved 
without being in earnest about it. God is in earnest, and Christ is in earn- 
est, and Satan is in earnest, and so must we be if we would be saved. And 
those who seek the Savior with all their heart will find Him. See what 
He did for this blind man! "And Jesus stood still and commanded him 
to be called; and they called the blind man, saying unto him, be of good 
comfort, rise, He calleth thee." It seems from their comforting him that 
the blind man had begun to be troubled because his prayer was not 
answered. With what joy, then, did he hear the word, " Rise, He calleth 
thee." And these words may be sounded in the ears of every poor sinner 
who is earnestly calling on Christ for mercy. "Rise, He calleth thee." 
Hear Him say, "Look unto me all ye ends of the earth and be ye saved." 
"Whosoever will let him take of the water of life freely." Surely, when 
6 



82 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



Jesus says this, "He calleth thee; " and why should any one doubt or hes- 
itate to go to the Savior vv'ho is thus calling ? 

It is strange that many -\vho know that Christ calls them in these invita- 
tions, and who sometimes feel that they would like to go, hold back because 
they do not feel that they are fit to go. They think there is something, they 
can not tell exactly what, to be done or felt by them before they can come 
to Christ. This is a great mistake. Suppose this blind man, when Jesus 
stopped and called him, had waited to see before he went? How foolish it 
would have been ? But not more so than the sinner's waiting to get ready 
to go to Christ. Jesus receives sinners, and all that the sinner needs to do 
is just to act as this blind man did. Hearing the Savior's call, ' ' he, casting 
away his garment" or cloak, "rose and came to Jesus." He delayed not 
a moment for anything; his cloak was in his way and he threw that oft. 
So the sinner should throw aside everything that hinders his coming to 
Christ — his vain excuses, the filthy garment of his self-righteousness, his 
hope of getting better — and come just as he is. 

"And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should 
do unto thee ? " And the blind man turned his sightless eyes toward Jesus 
and said unto Him, "Lord, that I might receive my sight." This, too, is 
the very prayer for the sinner to offer. For he needs to have the eyes of 
his heart opened that he may see how lost and ruined and helpless a sinner 
he is, and how great and willing and loving a Savior Jesus is ! 

"And Jesus said unto him, go thy way, thy faith hath made thee whole. 
And immediately he received his sight." Yes, in a moment the dark mist 
of gloomy years rolled away, and he was like one who had come into a new 
world. Then he knew that the darkness he had all along felt was in him- 
self, not in the beautiful world. And with what surprise does the soul 
brought out of nature's darkness into the glorious light of the gospel find 
the service of God to be a joyous and happy service. 

Jesus said to the blind man, "thy faith hath made thee whole." How ? 
By bringing him to Christ. He believed that Jesus was the promised Sa- 
vior, that he was able to heal him. This led him to call upon Him for 
mercy; to keep calling till he was heard. He trusted in Christ, and was 
healed by Christ. 

Now notice what the blind man did when he was healed. He followed 
Jesus in the way. He seems to have loved his society. Our Lord and 
those who were with him were gokig up to Jerusalem to worship at the 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



83 



great feast, and he will go with them, for, no doubt, Jesus opened not 
only the eyes of his body but of his soul. 

And every soul that has seen Jesus as its Savior — every one who has 
truly come to Him for healing, becomes a follower. When He opens the 
eyes of any one he sees so much of beauty in Him that he is drawn with 
cords of love to run after Him. 



8 4 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



> 

CHAPTER V. 

SETTLEMENT AND LABORS IN AMELIA. 

For more than a year McPheeters preached the gospel from 
plantation to plantation, and the zeal and self-denial of this 
godly minister attracted the attention even of unbelievers. In 
September, 1847, the evangelist began to entertain thoughts of 
a pastorate. The diary says : 

" Having considered the subject with care and attention, I 
have come to the conclusion that it is my duty to give up my 
present field and seek the pastoral relation. My principal rea- 
sons are the following: 1st. While I consider the work as one 
of very great interest and importance, and my views, in this 
respect, have undergone no change, I am persuaded that, as z 
pastor, I can accomplish as much, perhaps more, for the in- 
struction of the negroes than I can as a missionary. 2d. I find 
the labor and exposure of my present field likely to undermine 
my health. 3d. There is but little prospect of carrying out my 
plan in this country. 4th. I find that it is likely to be of per- 
manent injury to me as a preacher. 5th. My most judicious 
friends advise me to this course. 

" Before I left Nottoway I had received an informal invita- 
tion from the elders of Pisgah church, Woodford county, Ky., 
to come and preach for them, in reference to a settlement. 
This invitation I had substantially declined, as I had not then 
made up my mind to quit my missionary work. Upon deter- 
mining to give up this field, however, I concluded to accom- 
pany Scott and his bride to Kentucky, look at the country, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 85 

and, if a place offers, to see whether it would suit me and I it. 
We set out for Philadelphia on Monday, 13th of September, 
for the West. Spent first night in Baltimore. Next day took 
Baltimore and Ohio railroad for Cumberland, by Harper's 
Ferry, and reached Cumberland that night. Without stopping, 
we took stage for Wheeling; crossed the Cumberland Moun- 
tains and arrived in Wheeling on the night following — a very 
fatiguing ride of one hundred and thirty miles, and some six 
hours behind our time. In Wheeling we remained part of a 
day, and then took a steamboat down the Ohio river. Spend- 
ing the Sabbath in Portsmouth, we arrived in Cincinnati early 
in the week, and took the boat there for Frankfort, Ky., and 
reached Mr. Berryman's, seven miles from Lexington, early 
in the week — Wednesday, I think. Here I remained, and 
in the neighborhood. In the meantime the elders had 
selected a minister to fill the vacancy at Pisgah, and I was 
thinking of making my arrangements to return home, when I 
was invited to preach at the churches of Woodford and Har- 
mony, which I did for three Sabbaths. They then proposed 
to give me a call, which I declined considering until I should 
return to Virginia. I left Mr. Berryman's, where I had been 
so kindly entertained, on Monday, Sept. 11, and set out for 
this place, Dr. Jones 7 . Was detained in Cincinnati two days 
by sickness, and reached here, by the same way I went, on 
the 23d of October. When at Mr. Eppes', I received an invi- 
tation to visit the church in Amelia, with a view to a call, and 
as I had made an arrangement to preach there the first Sab- 
bath of November, I went over last Sabbath and preached at 
Mt. Zion. For more than a week I have had a distresssing 
pain in the lower part of my abdomen, which has given me 
some uneasiness; preached, however, in the evening. W T ent 
with Dr. Anderson next day to Garland Jefferson's, that night 



86 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



to Frank Eggleston's, and then home. I made no arrangement 
with the Amelia church. 

" Sunday, Nov. 4. — Preached to-day in the upper church 
my farewell sermon ; congregation not large. Was much af- 
fected at the prospect of seeing and preaching to this people 
no more. This evening preached to Dr. Jones* people. 

Nov. 15. — Preached at 12 o'clock at Crawley Jones' — the 
room full. When I concluded, the people came to bid me 
farewell, with tears. 

" Nov. 19.— A letter from the Church at Woodford, Ky.' 

Nov. 21. — Preached to-day at the chapel, the congregation 
the largest that I have ever seen there; but they came in so ir- 
regularly that it, in a great measure, defeated the sermon. 

" Jan. 31, 1848. — I have for a long time neglected to write 
in my journal, for reasons which it would be difficult for me 
now to state. 

" The choice which I should make between the Church in 
Woodford, Ky., and Amelia, for a long time, gave me much 
anxiety. After deliberation, I concluded to go to Kentucky, 
and had made all my arrangements to do so, when I was in- 
vited to Amelia to preach a funeral sermon. I went for the 
double purpose of preaching and announcing my determina- 
tion to go to Kentucky. The members of the Church seemed 
greatly disappointed and troubled at my decision. Dr. An- 
derson and Mr. Jefferson accompanied me to the house of 
Capt. Perkinson, another elder, and they, also, united in a de- 
sire for me to remain. I told them freely my difficulties. 
Among others, that I saw no prospect of making a permanent 
settlement among them, as I was persuaded that I could not 
remain longer than a year, or at most two years, among them. 
They stated that they were resolved to have a pastor, and had 
fixed upon me. If I would consent to remain, at least for a 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



8 7 



year, that we could then make a trial and see what could be 
done ; that for the next year they would personally pledge to 
me an adequate salary, and added many other considerations, 
especially the destitution and feeble state of the Church. After 
considering the whole matter, at no inconsiderable sacrifice of 
my personal preferences and pecuniary advantage, I resolved, 
as a matter of duty, to remain. 

"I was ordained by the Presbytery of East Hanover, at 
Chinquepin church, on the nth day of June, 1848. Members 
of Presbytery present — Revs. Mr. Pryor, Nevius and Dudley. 
I preached in the evening ; Mr. Pryor in the morning. 

"March 17, 1849. — Rode up to Painville, dined with Dr. 
Evans' family, visited Mr. Wisigar's lamily, saw Mrs. Miller, 
in the evening performed the marriage ceremony for two col- 
ored people at Dr. Evans'. 

"May 10. — Remained at home. Received several letters, 
one telling me that brother Alexander and sister Jane had made 
a profession of religion. For this the Lord be praised. Every 
member of my father's family are now members of the Church. 
The union of a whole family in heaven is, indeed, a glorious 
prospect. 

"Dec. ist. — Visited Mrs. Frank Eggleston and dined. 
When I came home found three letters — one from Dr. Harrison, 
Chairman of the Faculty of the University of Virginia, inform- 
ing me of my appointment to the Chaplaincy ; one from Dr. 
McGufTey, urging acceptance ; one from Ruffner, do. 

" Dec. 6th. — Spent a miserable day deciding upon the call 
to the University ; up until 2 a. m. 

" Dec. 7TH. — One of the most distressing days of my life, 
from the same cause. Decided to reject the call; up until 

5 A. M." 



88 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



The testimony of Mr. J. G. Jefferson, of Amelia county, Va., 
is interesting. He says : 

"When I first became acquainted with Mr. McPheeters 
he was preaching to the colored people in Nottoway county, 
having appointments at the houses of large planters. 

" At that time the question of abolishing slavery had become 
very exciting. And although the educated and genteel people 
did not generally object to his scheme of preaching from house 
to house to the negroes, yet quite a large number of the lower 
class were very resolutely opposed, and some even threatened 
violence, which did not make him hesitate. He, however, did 
not become excited, but went quietly from house to house 
preaching to them. I think he had at one time eighteen 
appointments at different houses. 

" He was a man of great firmness and decision of character. 
At the time when the excitement about his preaching to the 
negroes at the plantations was at the highest pitch, some half 
dozen violent men agreed to use violence, if necessary, to stop 
him, and had actually held a meeting once or twice to devise 
some plan. Between these meetings Dr. McPheeters, in going 
to one of his appointments, had to pass near the residence of 
the leader of this party, who owned a large farm. Riding 
along the public road, after having gone past the dwelling some 
distance, he saw a large number of cows destroying the crop. 
He immediately turned back and rode quite a distance to the 
house, and calling the man out, told him that he could not go 
on without letting him know about it. He then went forward. 
But this leader and those who concerted violence with him 
were all present that day at the appointed place of preaching. 
After getting to the meeting, however, the leader told the others 
the circumstances as they have been related, and then remarked : 
Gentlemen, a man who could do this will do us no harm, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 89 

and no man shall do him any harm/ Soon after this Mr. 
McPheeters became convinced that he could do more good 
by combining preaching to both races, and the Amelia church 
being vacant, he accepted an offer to preach for us as an 
Evangelist. He lived in my house. All of my family became 
very much devoted to him. Although he now only preached 
to the negroes in the evenings after preaching to the whites, 
yet he had great influence with them. He was, even at that 
early day, one of the most impressive preachers I ever heard. 
I never shall forget a visit that we made together to East 
Hanover Presbytery, whose sessions were held at a church 
called Bethlehem, seventeen miles below Richmond. Presby- 
tery met Thursday. There were a goodly number of distin- 
guished preachers present — Drs. Moore, Hoge, Leyburn, Pryor, 
and others. Mr. McPheeters at this time had preached but a 
few sermons to the whites. On Saturday of Presbytery he 
was asked to preach to a large congregation. I remember an 
old lady of Dr. Leyburn's congregation, from Petersburg, told 
me that she had gone to Dr. Leyburn and remonstrated with 
him for putting up to preach, and that to so large and intelli- 
gent a congregation, a young and untried preacher. She said 
Dr. Leyburn remarked, jocularly : 6 Sister, he is said to be a 
good preacher to negroes and he may surprise you.' The old 
lady said he had proceeded but a very little way before she 
almost shouted for joy that they had put him up. I myself 
can never forget the impression the young preacher made that 
day on that congregation. After the sermon quite a number 
went to him and took him by the hand and congratulated him. 
Among others who did this was a local Methodist preacher 
named Kidd, and Dr. Carter Branton, a very intelligent man 
and a leading Elder in the New School Church, who told me, 
6 We must have your preacher, because he can unite the Old 



90 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

and New School down here, and he is the only one that 
can/ 

" Mr. McPheeters certainly combined more good qualities 
than any man I ever knew. He was always agreeable and 
the life of every company that he entered. But, nevertheless, 
he always impressed you with his piety. He was also distin- 
guished above all others for his humility. While he lived with 
me he was flattered enough to have ruined any ordinary man, 
and yet I could not see that it made any change in him. 
There was a man in our congregation who thought it would 
please Mr. McPheeters to be told how great a man he was, 
but I have heard him speak of that person with disgust. And 
this is the only one I ever heard him speak of in that way. 

" 1 can remember many little things that he used to do and 
say which were very interesting to us, but I cannot write them 
in such a way as to interest the public. In conclusion, I would 
say that he left a reputation in our community of which any 
man in the present or past generation might justly be proud. 
I wish, my dear sir, that I was accustomed to write, so that I 
might give an interesting account of the early ministry of my 
dear friend Mr. McPheeters ; but hope you will excuse me for 
sending this disjointed account of what I remember of him." 

Two discourses, at the request of friends, have been inserted 
in the Memoir. The sermon that follows was written in 1849, 
and rewritten in 1855. It was repeated more frequently than 
any discourse which Mr. McPheeters ever prepared, having 
been preached twenty-six times in different regions ot the 
country, from Raleigh, N. C, to Fort Union, in New Mexico. 
This repetition arose, no doubt, from the fact that fervid and 
solemn impressions were known, almost invariably, to accom- 
pany its delivery : 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



91 



THE WAY OF TRANSGRESSORS IS HARD. 

(Prov. xiii. 15, last clause.) 

If the existence of an infinitely wise, holy and almighty Governor of the 
universe be admitted, and if it be further admitted that He takes any inter- 
est in the affairs of men, loving those who obey His commands and feeling 
any displeasure at those who transgress His laws, we would naturally con- 
clude, without any other evidence, that He would so order things in the 
dispensation of His providence that while ' 'wisdom's ways should be ways 
of pleasantness " that the "way of the transgessor should be hard." For 
it would be a reflection no less upon the goodness than upon the wisdom of 
God to suppose that He would offer an inducement to transgressors and a 
reward to sinners by making the ways of disobedience so pleasant as to 
tempt men to walk in them, contrary to His commands and the order of His 
government. This conclusion of natural reason is abundantly confirmed by 
Sacred Scripture and experience. It is true, this world is not the place 
where sin meets with its full and adequate punishment ; hence every act of 
transgression does not here receive its just recompense of reward. Nay, 
we are told that God endures with much long suffering even the vessels of 
wrath fitted for destruction, and that He causes His sun to rise upon the 
evil and the good and sends His rain upon the just and the unjust. But 
while this is true, it is at the same time no less true that in the ordinary 
administration of His providential government He has made the constitu- 
tion of His creatures and of the external world such that, in the very nature 
of the case, the "way of transgressors must be hard;" and it is hard 
because they sin against the nature of things. Every creature of God is 
good and is to be received, i. e., enjoyed, with thanksgiving; and when 
they are so received they minister — as God designed they should — to the 
comfort and happiness of man. The sin of the transgressor is that he 
refuses so to use them. Instead of giving creature blessings that subordinate 
place in his affection to which they are entitled, he exalts them into supreme 
objects of affection ; instead of using the world, as not abusing it, he seeks it 
that he may consume it upon his lusts. This, in the very nature of the 
case, must produce misery. This idolatrous love of the world must end in 
blighted hopes and disappointed and ungratified affections, while the im- 
moderate or intemperate use of creature blessings invariably has a tendency 
to weaken, corrupt and destroy both body and mind. It may be demon- 
strated that all the laws of nature are the laws of virtue. God has written 



9 2 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



the law of virtue on every nerve and tissue in the human body, which sin 
with difficulty erases after many a writhing protest and many a cup of 
agony from outraged and suffering nature, thus showing that nature her- 
self is arrayed against the transgressor to make his way hard. It is a truth, 
worthy of especial regard, that there is not a real pleasure of any kind what- 
ever that is peculiar to transgressors which might not be had in the way of 
obedience. I know that the irreligious think differently. But what real 
pleasure has the sinner which the saint has not? Does the world lose 
any of its brightness by being regarded as the gift of a kind and loving 
Father ? True, the Christian is required to deny himself— to take up his 
cross and follow Christ. But remember that Christian self-denial is not the 
only self-denial; the transgressors have to deny themselves no less than the 
people of God. All of the depraved passions and appetites of the soul can 
not be gratified, for many of them are in direct conflict with others. Cov- 
etousness can not be gratified without denying pride and vanity. Ambition 
feeds upon a host of other appetites and affections. In fact, all of the cor- 
rupt desires of men are full of contradictions and inconsistencies, and make 
the soul that is enslaved by them a Babel of confusion. The love of riches, 
the love of honor and pleasure, pride, coveteousness, vanity and luxury, 
jostle and interfere in a thousand various rencounters. They are justly 
compared by Solomon to the daughters of the horse-leech, ever crying, 
" give, give," and to the grave that never says, it is enough. So that if the 
Christian duty of mortifying our corruptions be painful, the sinful effort to 
satisfy them is absolutely impossible. 

The way of the transgressor is hard because he has to forego all the sup- 
port and comfort and exalted happiness which religion gives in this life. 

One of the common delusions which the great adversary practices, espec- 
ially upon the young and the gay, is to persuade them that religion is a dark 
and gloomy service, inconsistent with the vivacity of youth, and utterly 
destructive of the pleasures of this life. Many think religion a hard bar- 
gain, by which men agree to be miserable here that they may not be 
miserable hereafter. Strange delusion! Contradicted alike by Sacred 
Scripture, by reason, and by experience. Godliness has the promise of the 
life that now is no less than of that which is to come. And why should it 
not be so? Is not God the giver and the source of all happiness, temporal 
as well as eternal ? ' ' Every good and perfect gift comes down from the 
Father of lights." "All our springs are in Him." Well, who are the 
wicked ? Are they not the enemies of God — those with whom He says 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



93 



He is angry every day ? And who are the righteous ? Are they not the 
friends of God — those whom He loved so well as to give His only 
begotten Son for their redemption ! And does God give more hap- 
piness to His enemies than to His friends ? Nay. Does God so delight 
in the misery of His children as to arrange a plan of redemption so 
as to insure the unhappiness of those who embrace its promises ? Can 
even the father of lies impose so monstrous an absurdity upon those 
whom he leads captive at his will? Let not the irreligious appeal to 
their own experience to deny the plain teachings of Sacred Scripture and 
reason ? Let not the impenitent think because the serious consideration of 
religion fills them with so much gloom, and because the duties of religion 
are so irksome to them that, therefore; religion would make them unhappy. 
The wicked can not appeal to their experience on this subject, for the sim- 
ple reason that they have none. That which has made them miserable 
when they have thought upon this subject is not religion, but the want of it. 

Upon the question, what effect religion has in making its possessors happy 
or unhappy, they absolutely have no experience whatever. If we wish to 
know what experience teaches, we must ask true Christians, and they, 
with united testimony say, with David, "I would rather be a doorkeeper in 
the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness." Oh ! there is 
a high and holy joy in loving and serving God of which the wicked can 
form no estimate. There is a calm serenity of soul in communing with the 
Father of spirits which transcends all the pleasures of sense. There is a 
peace which Jesus speaks to the soul of which the world knows nothing, 
and there is a hope, which the Christian has as an anchor to the soul, 
remaining both sure and steadfast amid the wildest storms of life. And 
the way of the transgressor is hard because he is destitute of these comforts 
and supports of religion. While the transgressor is in health and strength; 
while he is surrounded by fortune and by friends ; while Providence seems 
to smile upon his efforts and bless the labor of his hand; while the fig tree 
blossoms and the fruit is on the vine ; while the labor of the olive does not 
fail and the flock is not cut off from the fold, he may, indeed, not feel his way 
to be hard. But these things can not always last. No man escapes the sor- 
rows and disappointments which are the common lot of humanity. The day 
of darkness comes alike upon all. The wife must watch with agony the hus- 
band's vain struggle with the king of terrors. The husband must follow' 
the sad procession which bears the object of his cherished affection to the 
tomb. Parents must look upon the mute suffering of helpless infants and 



94 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



wipe the death damp from the brow of loving children. Oh ! there are 
times to us all when the soul, like Noah's dove, finds the world a waste 
without a resting place. And what a consolation is it in this midnight 
of the soul to lift up an eye toward heaven, and see there the sympathizing 
face of One who has been touched with a feeling of our infirmity, and to 
hear His heavenly voice saying: "Let not your heart be troubled." 
"When thou passest through the waters I will be with thee: and through 
the rivers, they shall not overflow thee." "When thou walkest through 
the fire thou shalt not be burned : neither shall the flames kindle upon 
thee." But the way of the transgressor is cheered by no such beams from 
heaven. His only resources are sullen grief, hopeless despair, or a cold 
and heartless philosophy : and miserable comforters are they all. 

2. Again, the way of the transgressor is hard, because he pursues it 
contrary to his better judgment and feeling and the dictates of an intelli- 
gent conscience. Let men say what they will, there is something in the 
pure and heavenly religion of the Bible which commends it to the enlight- 
ened judgment of all men. And I care not what men say or how they live, 
there is, after all, a profound conviction in the soul that Chistianity is true 
and good. There is a feeling deep as the consciousness of immortality, 
that' God is the proper aim of the soul. And neither the most thought- 
less nor the most reckless can always satisfy themselves that their course is 
wise, safe and best. 

Conscience, too, makes the way of the transgressor hard. He is but a 
shallow observer who thinks the calm exterior of men is always a sure 
index to the state within. It is just as true of others as you know it to be 
of yourself, that they are not as free from anxiety as their external manner 
seems to imply. Look in at the gay assembly whirling in the giddy mazes 
of the dance. How many bright and smiling faces ! but are all as merry 
as they seem ? Ah ! there is many an aching heart there beating beneath 
a smiling face. 

Think you, young man, that your reckless, godless companion is as 
calm in view ot the future as he would have you believe ! Could you 
follow him to his retirement ; could you hear the voice that speaks in the 
sleepless midnight hours, you would find that he often has thoughts and 
feelings, fears and apprehensions, which make his way hard. 

I knew a young man who, at the University, when he graduated, was 
famous among the infamous for his heaven-daring blasphemy. He 
has told me since that after having often defied and insulted his Maker be- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



95 



fore his companions, he has gone into the dark recesses of the wood and, 
under stripes of conscience, in an agony of terror and remorse, begged 
God to forgive and spare him. There is not a more mysterious power in 
the human soul than that faculty which we call conscience. Placed by God 
in the heart of every accountable being as a witness for himself, it meets 
the transgressor in his way and warns him of his guilt and danger. Its 
voice, for a time, may be hushed, but it still speaks. It may be trampled 
under foot, but it rises and follows and warns. A long and determined effort 
may seem to conquer and destroy it ; but it never dies. Unseen, and 
with sword unsheathed, it hovers over the transgressor's way and bides its 
time. And when the command comes, it smites with the sword of Gideon 
and of God. 

Again, the way of the transgressor is hard, because it is progressive from 
bad to worse. It is one of the fearful retributions of God's vindictive jus- 
tice that he frequently gives transgressors up to their own hearts' lusts, and 
makes sin the punishment of sin. And no man beginning the way of the 
transgressor can possibly tell how far and how rapidly he may be hurried 
to an end from which he would now draw back with horror. There is a 
progression in sin. The downward road is an inclined plane, which men 
often descend with fearfully accelerated velocity. It is true, God does not 
permit every transgressor to run the full course upon which he sets out. 
He restrains the remainder of wrath that would not praise him. But he 
does not restrain all. He permits many, very many, to drink to the very 
dregs the cup of wickedness which they mix. And God has promised no 
one beginning the way of transgression that he will restrain him. Every one 
has to make the experiment for himself — whether he shall go on and be- 
come one of the monuments set up along the path of ruin to warn others 
that the way of the transgressor is hard. I know that vanity and self-love 
inspire a false confidence that it will not be so with us. The heart is de- 
ceitful above all things as well as desperately wicked. When Hazael, 
servant, of Benhadad King of Syria, came to inquire of the Prophet Elisha 
of a certain matter, we are told that the prophet looked upon him and 
wept. Hazael asked him the cause of his sorrow. Elisha recounts the 
deeds of horror which he foresees Hazael would commit. The recital fills 
Hazael with indignation and surprise; and, turning to the prophet he said, 
" Is thy servant a dog to do this great thing?" The man of God, with 
vision lighted by the Almighty, simply replied: "The Tordhas shown 
me that thou art to be the King of Syria." His circumstances were to be 



9 6 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



changed. The intermediate steps of treachery and bloodshed which were 
to bring him to the throne were to be passed through. New motives of 
ambition and avarice and revenge were to be brought to bear upon him, and 
then Hazael, King of Syria, would be prepared to do that at which this Ha- 
zael, servant of Benhadad, shuddered to think. It is a hazardous enterprise 
leaping half way down a precipice. And this is what the transgressor at- 
tempts, and in his heart believes he can do it with safety. 

Look at that poor wretch in the street wallowing in filth and drunkenness, 
filling the air with stench and blasphemy, from whose bloated and besotted 
face the last vestige of the image of His Creator is wiped. He did not come 
there in a day. He was not always what you now see him. He was once 
a smiling infant upon a fond mother's lap — the joy of her heart, the hope of 
her declining years. He was once a light-hearted, joyous boy. He was 
once a promising young man. With companions as gay and as thought- 
less as himself he commenced walking in the way of transgressors. That 
way seemed strewn with friends and radiant with hope. He dreamed not 
of danger. He laughed at the voice of wisdom and the teachings of expe- 
rience. He said: "Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth! and let thy 
heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine 
heart and in the sight of thine eyes, forgetting that for all these things 
God would bring him into judgment. He looked upon the wine when it 
was red, when it gave its color to the cup, when it moved itself aright, 
forgetting that at last it biteth like a serpent and stingeth like an adder. 
He listens to the voice of the strange woman, even to the stranger who flat- 
tereth with her lips, and he went with her as the ox goeth to the slaughter 
and the fool to the correction of the stocks, forgetting that her house is 
the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death. Ah ! little did he 
think when he set out that he was entering the labyrinth whose dreary 
mazes only find an outlet in the bottomless pit. And yet every step was 
natural and easy. Link by link the tyrant Habit bound him with unsus- 
pected chains. Appetite silently gained the mastery over reason and con- 
science. One kind of dissipation led to another. Dissipation produced 
extravagance. Extravagance brought poverty and want. Then came a 
sense of degradation and crime. On, on, he went in his fearful career, 
seeking a lower, and yet a lower depth ! And there he lies, a moral wreck, 
hateful and hating — a burthen to himself and a nuisance to society, with- 
out friends, without character, without hope, either for this life or that 
which is to come. The way of the transgressor is hard. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



97 



But I admit that every transgressor does not run such a course. There 
are ways of sin which are not such ways of degradation. There are paths 
of ruin which are decent, and, in the common acceptation, honorable. 
There are those whom the Sacred Scriptures call transgressors who are in 
their lives amiable, gentle and refined. But whatever be the way of the 
transgressor, it is still hard — hard, because every such way leads to a di- 
rect and fearful contest with an Almighty Being. God is the sovereign, 
absolute and rightful governor of the universe, having a right from his very 
nature to give laws, which are, and should be, binding on all of his crea- 
tures. He has established a government — a government which he must and 
will maintain. Against this government every transgressor is in the sight 
of man and angels in defiant resistance. God's authority he has set at 
naught, and God's laws he has trampled under his feet. Disguise it as he 
may, he has set up the standard of revolt, and every step brings him nearer 
to the time when the contest is to be decided. And the way that leads to 
such a contest is a hard way, for let the potsherds of earth contend with 
the potsherds ; but woe be to him who contendeth with his Maker ! Oh ! 
what shall the puny arm of flesh do when it meets an angry God in his al- 
mightiness. Yes, God has set himself over against the way of the trans- 
gressor, and pledged his word and his omnipotence for his destruction. 
* 1 See now, ' ' says He, 4 4 it is I, even I, and no stranger. " ' ' God is with me. 
I kill and I make alive. I wound and I heal. Neither is there any that 
can deliver out of my hand. For I lift my hand to heaven and say, I live 
forever. If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on ven- 
geance, I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that 
hate me." The temporary prosperity of sinners should not deceive them. 
It is but a prelude to their misery. The sunshine in which they rejoice is but 
ripening them for destruction. I have seen, says the Psalmist, the wicked 
in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree. Yet he passed 
away, and lo ! he was not ; yea, I sought for him, but he could not be 
found. Therefore, although pride compasseth him like a garment, and his 
eyes stand out with fatness, and he has more than heart can wish, yet 
surely he is set in slippery places ; in due time his feet shall slide. And 
because God has thus set himself in the way of the transgressor, it is a hard 
way, for 'tis a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. 

Again, the way of the transgressor is hard, because it leads to final, 
hopeless and everlasting ruin. Suppose, as is not true, that the wicked in 
this life enjoyed all the happiness of which their nature is susceptible ; sup- 
7 



9 S 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



pose that every wish of their hearts was gratified, every hope realized ; nay, 
suppose their way lay through a garden as beautiful and fragrant as Eden, and 
at last terminated in everlasting despair, would it not still be a hard way? 
The Sacred Scriptures speak distinctly and solemnly of the end to which the 
way of the transgressor leads. Men may, if they choose, deny it, and try 
to explain it away. But there it is as the mouth of the Lord has uttered it. 
There may be figurative language used; but these figures mean something. 
God is no trifler. He plays no paltry, tricks upon His creatures. He said to 
Adam, in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt die. A lost paradise, a cursed 
earth, and the sickness, sorrows, tears, lamentations and woes of six thou- 
sand years have proved that He meant what He said. Ah ! it has come to 
pass, as we see this day. And so will the threatenings which He has made 
about the second death. Then all the dreadful figures, if figures they be, by 
which the sufferings of the finally impenitent are shadowed forth, will be found 
to be dreadful realities. What definitely will constitute the sufferings of the 
enemies of God I do not pretend to know, and I shall not draw upon 
imagination for a picture of that land of darkness, death and long despair. 
But this I know, when the transgressor shall hear the sentence which shall 
banish him from God and all good beings ; when the light of eternity shall 
fall upon the tablet of memory, and bring out in distinct and legible charac- 
ters the sins and guilt and folly of a misspent life ; when the sleeping con- 
science shall awake to sleep no more, and point to time misspent, talents 
unimproved, and fair occasion passed forever by ; w T hen the poor, undone 
soul shall remember gospel-calls slighted, gospel-offers rejected, and gospel 
salvation lost forever ; when in the terror and dismay of that dread hour, 
the poor sinner shall cast an eye back and find no help, and forward and 
see no end ; when he shall lift it upward, and in anguish say, 
Farewell, ye happy fields, 

Where joy forever dwells. Hail, horrors, hail! 
Infernal world ! And thou, profoundest hell, 
Receive thy new possessor ! 

He will then know, as God in His mercy grant that none of us may 
ever know, that the way of the transgressor is hard. 

Lastly, the way of the transgressor is hard because he has to make 
his way down to hell over many bleeding hearts that love him and by 
the very cross of that Savior who died for sinners. O, there are strong 
and tender ties of kindness and affection drawing transgressors toward 
heaven ! Do what he will, the godless husband sometimes feels a rebuke 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



99 



for his sins in the unobtrusive and earnest piety of his wife which he can not 
resist, and he feels that the way is hard that must part him from her forever. 
The heedless young man sometimes remembers the sunny days of child- 
hood, when his gentle, loving mother put his little hands in hers and taught 
him to say, "Our Father which art in heaven," and then took him in her lap 
and with swimming eyes and solemn words told him of that Heavenly 
Father's love . And oh ! the memory of childhood and home and mother, 
all make him feel that his way is hard. Nor is this all. There is yet another 
obstacle to be overcome. Right in the path of the transgressor God in his 
mercy has placed the cross of Christ. When every other restraint is 
broken through, when every other barrier is overleaped, this mightiest and 
strongest obstruction on the way to ruin has to be surmounted. As the 
transgressor pursues his ruinous way his eye catches sight of One hanging 
on the cross in agony and blood. It is the Son of God making an atone- 
ment for a guilty world. As he draws near he sees His eye fixed upon 
him, and he hears His voice in melting, pitying, dying love calling upon 
him to stop and not trample on the blood of atonement. And oh ! it is hard 
to wade through. It is hard for one whose bosom heaves with one gener- 
ous emotion not to feel the influence of redeeming love, not to heed the call 
of pardoning mercy, not to yield to the pleadings of Calvary. Blessed 
Savior! how can men thus reject and despise Thee, spurn Thy offered 
mercy and plunge into endless ruin ! Surely the way to ruin must be hard 
when it leads by the cross of Christ. 

Dear, dying, impenitent hearer, what can I say more ? You see your way 
is dark and leads to hell ; why will you persevere ? 1 ' Turn ye, turn ye ; why 
will you die ? " Oh ! think of these things. Take not another step in that 
fearful way. It may be your ruin. "I entreat you by that compassion 
that looked down from the height of the sanctuary to hear the groaning of 
the prisoners and to loose those that were appointed unto death. I beseech 
you by that love that bled on Calvary, by that patience which has called after 
you from your childhood. I warn you by all the dreadful weight of your 
guilt, by the terrors of a dying bed, by the solemnities of the last judgment. 
In the name and by the authority of the Eternal God, I charge you not to 
make your bed in hell." 

Rev. B. M. Hobson says : 

" My acquaintance with Dr. McPheeters began with young 
Mr. McPheeters at the University of North Carolina, when 



IOO 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



he came to matriculate, as I was about to leave college. He 
was then a very young man, of pleasing fierso?mel, and, judg- 
ing from a little observation and the eagerness with which his 
company was sought by young gentlemen from the Capital of 
the State, I concluded that he must be a young man of extra- 
ordinary vivacity and piquancy of conversation. His associations 
embraced a few whom I knew, and from them I learned that 
he was greatly beloved by all the youth about Raleigh. There 
was then a buoyancy about him that was not the result of 
attrition. It was the incessant bubbling ot his own good 
nature that lost sight of itself in the superior enjoyment of 
imparting happiness to others. The young discovered by a 
sort of intuition that he was unselfish and genial in his nature, 
and they all came to him as if all knew him to be their friend. 
He maintained this character all his life, and it was the great 
secret of those warm friendships that cheered him in the event- 
ful anxieties beneath which his health at last failed and the 
man of God fell. 

" Years pass away, and his career as a minister of Christ 
begins. His first call to become a pastor is from the Church 
in Amelia county, Virginia, where I had been his predecessor. 
Here his lot is cast among a cultured and generous people, 
who would receive a young man of his character with open 
hearts and open arms. He was probably never happier than 
in association with that people, nor could they have been hap- 
pier in a pastor. Mutual confidence was characteristic of that 
pastorate for many years. As is ordinarily the case, some of 
the people and their former pastor kept up a correspondence, 
in which frequent reference is made to the young pastor. 
Their enthusiastic admiration and love were obvious in all 
their allusions to him and his work. He might have been 
more useful elsewhere, but never more beloved. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. IOI 

"When he made a visit to St. Louis he passed through 
Louisville and spent several days with me. There was a warm 
greeting when we met. ' I have not felt at home before since 
I left Virginia/ and at once resigned himself to the luxury of a 
conversation about his old pastoral charge, deeply interesting 
to us both. I felt great comfort in his society and had much 
anxiety to hear him preach. When the Sabbath came, he 
preached in the morning and at night. In the first sermon he 
did not appear at ease. The matter was good, and the style 
and arrangement were lucid and excellent, but there was lack- 
ing the unction to give it power. He afterward appeared 
depressed, and on our way to my study he very deliberately 
remarked, ' You must preach to-night; I can not.' I gave him 
some words of encouragement, and told him it was clear that 
preaching was in him and he must let it out. The conclusion 
was soon reached, that he was to preach at night. From the 
time we entered the pulpit in the second service there was an 
ease and naturalness in conducting the exercises which gave 
assurance that he felt at home. And when he arose to preach 
he had uttered but few sentences before the attention of the 
congregation was riveted to the speaker. He continued in a 
strain of elevated thought and animated delivery to the end of 
the discourse. The truth gushed from his lips in a torrent. 
He was argumentative and convincing, instructive and emo- 
tional. He made no platitudes but cut his nearest way 
to the thought, and evolved another and another in such 
rapid succession that it excited the mind of the hearer 
lest something might be lost. It was this feature in his dis- 
courses that caused that breathless stillness in the congrega- 
tion that I have heard so frequently attended his ministra- 
tions and made them so solemn and imposing. He was from 
that hour installed in my heart as one of the sweetest gospel 



102 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

preachers I had ever heard, whose prospect of usefulness was 
unsurpassed. 

" Such was he in the earlier part of his ministry. He was 
eminently attractive. Obviously the young would seek so 
captivating a ministry, and his career in a large city might 
have been brilliant. With strength less than he possessed, it 
would have been easy for one to have become a star preacher, 
and afterward to have reached the reward of mortification and 
obscurity. He could have maintained the interest with which 
he began. But with no perceptible violence he gradually 
glided into a change more consistent with the idea of perma- 
nent relations. The diversion which he accomplished was the 
clearest evidence of the excellency of his judgment. He saw 
the dangers before him — to which some are insensible — and he 
avoided them. Years afterward, when I heard him in his 
own pulpit, his manner was calm and impressive. His sermon 
was filled with thought that was good, rich and scriptural, 
which he sought to lay heavily upon the heart of the Church — 
distinctly enough to be seen and weighty enough to be felt. 
But few men could have sustained such a change in his pulpit 
manner and yet have appeared to advantage. It is, however, 
but justice to him to say that the change only added to the 
merit of his ministry and took nothing from its real efficiency. 

"There were other things that passed in those few days 
which were socially and personally so characteristic of the man 
that, though it be difficult, I will try to reproduce here. He 
spoke of leaving his home and well nigh all earthly ties to go 
into a large city and there engage in a work whose issue was 
uncertain, and how inexpressibly sad these reflections had made 
him; that he had felt them all the journey as he came, and 
that his state of sadness had been obvious even to strangers. 
When he got into the stage to cross the Virginia mountains, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 1 03 

there were two ladies and a gentleman who were constantly 
making themselves merry at his woe-begone expression of face ; 
and suspecting that he was a clergyman, mistook his silence for 
an assumption of extreme sanctity. They would say that such 
a thing was as dull as a clergyman, another was as prosy as a 
sermon, and something else was too holy for this world. He 
said that in his unhappy frame of mind every shot told. He 
had not spoken a word for hours and only desired to be quiet, 
which one of these young ladies, by her frequent sallies of wit, 
most persistently interrupted. At last he could stand it no 
longer, and began to look around as if he were sentient. The 
young lady called attention to that early blooming peach-tree, 
and how beautiful it looked. The tree was on his side of the 
stage, and he answered, ' Yes, it is beautiful, but, like a great 
many pretty girls, too forward for luck.' After that he got on 
tolerably well. 

" He stopped at a little town on the Ohio river to spend the 
Sabbath. It was a silent Sabbath, without any church or place 
of preaching, and he could see no means of gathering a congre- 
gation together. Finding that it would be a solitary day, he 
spent much of it in his room ; but after awhile came into the 
reception room, where he saw a basket of books and an old 
man sitting by, who proved to be the colporteur. He went to 
the books, and while looking over them the old gentleman drew 
near and said, if he chose he could read one of the books that 
day and on to-morrow he would sell him one if he thought 
proper to buy, but that he did not sell on the Sabbath. He 
said to the colporteur that there were a great many books not 
worth buying, and that all his books were religious, a subject 
which he did not think he understood, and that a great many 
people did not think much of such books any way. The old 
man spoke to him of the importance of the subject of which 



104 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

they treated, and asked him to take one and read it. But he 
declined the offer, saying that he was afraid he would not 
understand the subject any better, and that his mind might be- 
come more confused than it was already; that he did not 
believe in books as much as some people, and that he believed 
in thinking more and reading less. The old gentleman began, 
to talk to him with much earnestness about yielding to the 
influence of irreligion and not examining the Scriptures for 
himself; pressed upon him most earnestly the necessity of 
piety in a young man who was thrown so much into tempta- 
tion, and exhorted him to put his trust in the Savior as the best 
security for this and the world to come. He said as the old 
man waxed warmer he became more attentive, which being 
observed by his old friend, he proceeded to press the obliga- 
tion of personal religion upon him with great fervency and 
force. He would sometimes point out a difficulty or make a show 
of opposition, to see how the old colporteur would manage the 
case, and admired the ease with which the old man could speak, 
even on subjects requiring thought and learning. 'Well,' said 
he, ' when I retired to my room I felt greatly refreshed, as 
much as if I had heard a right good sermon.' The good old 
man never suspected who his respectful hearer was. He en- 
joyed a singular pleasure in detailing this whole scene, and 
much more minutely than is here attempted, inferring the 
wonderful nature of divine truth as adapted to call out the 
powers of every grade of capacity and with arguments suited 
to move the highest and to move the lowest. No doubt other 
and similar events occurred in his life, for he seems to have had 
a great fondness for adventures of such a nature. 

" There never was a man of mark in whose presence one felt 
more disembarrassed. His impress was that of a good and 
generous nature united with simplicity itself; not a simplicity 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. i0 5 

condescending to littleness, but always blended with sound 
sense and elevated thought cast in the mould of the Spirit. In 
these respects no man more truly and habitually hid himself 
behind his Master, and to an extent greater than many of his 
intimate friends discerned. He did not get out of the sphere 
of the ministry when he might have lawfully gathered a laurel 
from the walks of literature and science. He had a good 
knowledge of architecture, and on the request of some public 
institution in St. Lous that he should lecture for them, I earn- 
estly persuaded him to accept the invitation, on the ground not 
only of his knowledge of that interesting science, but because 
of its utility to a large and rapidly growing city where, up to 
that time, there had been but few displays of architectural taste. 
He, however, declined, and, judging from his letters, because 
it did not fall within his sphere as a minister of Christ. This 
jealousy of spirit, repressing publicity and notoriety, was a 
beautiful reproduction of Him who was ( meek and lowly in 
heart/ who permitted the disciples to show Him the beauties 
of the temple only to open the way for uttering the sublime 
truths of his mission. 

" Nor was it a violent counterpart to this character that he 
could detect the assuming and the selfish, who must be seen 
and heard on all occasions. At such people he might choose 
to laugh in his good nature, but if persistent in their inordinate 
specialty he could administer a sub-acid which easily abated 
the nuisance. In this way he has sometimes refreshed a little 
company of friends and sometimes a judicatory of the Church. 

" When a good man finishes his course, there is a hallowed 
satisfaction in thinking over all that he was in himself and all 
that he was to the Church. There was nothing to detract from 
this satisfaction in all the history of Mr. McPheeters. If there 
was anything over which one might feel oppressed and turn 



106 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

aside to weep, it was over that intense suffering borne for so 
many years with so much cheerfulness and laden with such rich 
fruits of labor and love. Every sermon that he preached from 
that couch of suffering sounded like a miracle wrought by the 
Son of God, and to all that heard him was an appeal more 
touching than if Jesus had said, 1 Arise! take up thy bed and 
walk.' Blessed be God for such grace, by which 1 he being 
dead yet speaketh.' " 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



CHAPTER VI. 

REMOVAL TO ST. LOUIS PEACEFUL YEARS VISIT TO NEW 

MEXICO PROSPECT OF WAR PASTORAL LETTER. 

For five years Mr. McPheeters labored in Nottoway and 
Amelia. His ministry was greatly blessed. The tenderness, 
simplicity, cordiality and genuineness of the man won all 
hearts. The people of every class, white and colored, pre- 
ferred him in the pulpit and out of it to any other preacher. 
But at the very moment when his popularity was at its height, 
a call, altogether unsolicited, came to him from St. Louis. The 
mind of the young minister was exercised profoundly. True, 
in a rural district his labors had been pre-eminently successful, 
but it remained to be seen whether the talents which satisfied 
and even delighted a quiet Virginia congregation would meet 
the demands ot a flock situated in the bosom of a great com- 
mercial city. In such a crisis ministers do not always deter- 
mine wisely ; for not a few, in prospect of prominence, have 
separated from an humble but appreciative flock to ascertain 
afterward, in failure, mortification and sorrow, the rashness and 
folly of the step. In the ministry, positions which are gained 
by diplomacy do not ordinarily yield satisfactory fruits. There 
was no period of his ministerial life in which Mr. McPheeters 
did not realize the truth of this position in an extraordinary 
degree. In every settlement he waited on the Lord, and, as a 
consequence, his ways were always well ordered. His friends 
were as numerous in Missouri as they had been in Virginia ; 
he was as successful in Pine street as he had been in Notto- 



108 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D 

way or Amelia. The opinion here expressed is fully confirmed 
by Dr. Brookes, who says: 

" In February, 185 1, Rev. S. B. McPheeters, then preaching 
at Amelia Court House, Virginia, received a pastoral call to 
the Westminster Presbyterian Church of St. Louis. It con- 
sisted of a few members gathered principally from the Second 
Presbyterian Church, who were willing, for the sake of extend- 
ing the Redeemer's kingdom in a rapidly growing city, to 
endure the trials incident to such enterprises as they are, usually, 
inaugurated. They had previously enjoyed for a short time the 
ministrations of Rev. H. P. Goodrich, D. D., now deceased, 
and Rev. James A. Lyon, D. D., the well known pastor of the 
Presbyterian Church of Columbus, Mississippi. 

" Mr. McPheeters did not at first accept the call, but with 
characteristic delicacy returned it after his visit to the Church, 
that those who had invited him unheard might be left unem- 
barrassed in any action they might be disposed to take as 
the result of personal acquaintance. It was cordially and 
unanimously renewed, and he then recognized the will of God 
directing him to this new and important sphere of ministerial 
labor. 

" In May following he was married to Miss Eliza C, daugh- 
ter of Col. John Shanks, a prominent and influential citizen of 
Fincastle, Virginia, and in June of the same year removed with 
his youthful bride to St. Louis, where the next ten years of his 
life were passed amid constantly increasing evidences of his 
usefulness, and constantly repeated tokens of mutual affection 
between himself and the people whom he so faithfully served 
as an ambassador for Christ. 

" In December, 1853, his congregation was greatly strength- 
ened by uniting with the Pine Street Church, that had been in 
connection with the New School General Assembly. It is a 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 109 

striking proof of the high estimation in which he was held that 
the Church just named proposed the union, and insisted that 
he should be retained as pastor. From this time the united 
body assembled for worship in a building on the corner of Pine 
and Eleventh streets, and hence was called the Pine Street 
Church, while the house in which the Westminster Church had 
met fell into other hands. 

" Another significant indication of the warm regard which 
was entertained for him by those who were not connected with 
his congregation is shown in a remark made to the writer, by 
Hon. Hamilton R. Gamble, who was the leading Ruling Elder 
of the Second Presbyterian Church, and who stood in the front 
rank of the wise and faithful disciples of our Lord. He fre- 
quently said that when Rev. N. L. Rice, D. D., resigned the 
pastoral care of that Church he would have nominated and 
pressed the claims of Mr. McPheeters as his successor if he 
had not felt that it was wrong to disturb the peace and inter- 
rupt the prosperity of the Pine Street Church. Such a decla- 
ration from such a man was worth half a dozen ordinary 
pastoral calls, as denoting the deep impression produced by 
the preaching, and especially by the life of one who seemed to 
win his way without effort to every heart. 

"In June, 1859, still another expression of the respect for 
his ability and fidelity which he easily commanded was given 
by the Curators of Westminster College, who unanimously con- 
ferred upon him the title of Doctor of Divinity ; and although 
he was a man of too much good sense and fervent piety to 
care for the empty honor, that is of more than doubtful pro- 
priety when bestowed on the ministers of the despised and 
rejected Jesus, he did not wish to attract public attention by 
ostentatiously declining it. He, therefore, suffered it to pass 
unnoticed as one of the petty annoyances to which he was 



110 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

necessarily exposed, while duly appreciating it as the utterance 
of a kindly feeling on the part of brethren with whom he was 
intimately associated in the cause of their common Master. 

" If any are led to suppose from what has been said that he 
shaped his ministry to gain popular applause, or that he gave an 
uncertain sound touching Christian doctrine and duty, they are 
entirely mistaken.* He thoroughly despised the clap-trap ser- 
mons that have rendered so many pulpits famous, or rather 
infamous, and no one could be more bold and explicit in stating 
the great truths of the sacred Scriptures, or in pressing upon 
his hearers the high claims of God. A minister of some dis- 
tinction in Missouri once said of him that he spoke as a dying 
man to dying men, and always delivered his message as if he 
felt that it was his last opportunity for addressing his hearers. 
This conducts us to view him first for a moment as a 

PREACHER. 

"There was nothing in his theme, diction or delivery to 
attract the common crowd ; but those who habitually heard 
him were always instructed and profited, if they attended to his 
a mirable expositions of the Word of God. He constantly 
brought into the sanctuary ' pure oil beaten for the light/ and 
his discourses were generally prepared with unusual care. 
Even his Wednesday evening lectures, though delivered to a 
small number, were frequently written in full, and given to the 
faithful few who attended only after days of diligent study 
and devout meditation. He was a laborious searcher for 
truth, and when he discovered her radiant form, as portrayed 
by the: pen of inspiration, his -countenance beamed with her 
reflected glory and his delicate frame was tremulous with 
emotions of delight. Hence intense and self-forgetful earnest- 
ness marked his manner in the pulpit, as he hurried forward 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. Ill 

with singleness of aim, not to excite temporary feeling, but to 
produce profound conviction ; not to dazzle by the splendors 
of rhetoric, but to impress by the majesty of the divine Word. 
Gentle and forbearing as he was toward those who held the 
essential doctrines of grace, but differed from him on minor 
points of belief, he had no patience with others, who, in the 
garb of Christianity, assailed the fundamental articles of the 
Christian faith. When, for example, he was called to defend 
the divinity of our Lord, his eye would blaze and his voice ring 
like a trumpet in denouncing the monstrous and soul-destroy- 
ing heresy of Unitarianism, that would pluck the crown from 
the brow of God's eternal Son and rob the poor sinner of an 
atonement. 6 An emasculated gospel/ he was in the habit of 
terming it, and he resented the insult it gave to his Savior far 
►sooner than the greatest indignity offered to himself. The same 
conscientiousness and fidelity in the discharge of duty that dis- 
tinguished him as a preacher were ever exhibited in his work as a 

PASTOR. 

" Here, indeed, was his crowning excellence, for he was fit- 
ted by nature as well as by grace to mingle in the most en- 
deared intimacy with the members of his flock. His sympa- 
thies were so tender and so large that they entwined them- 
selves easily and gracefully about all who were brought under 
his care. He literally and readily obeyed the injunction of the 
Holy Ghost, 6 Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep 
with them that weep.' The people to whom he ministered, 
however various their circumstances, were sure to find in him 
a true friend and a wise counselor who was equal to any 
emergency. Possessing the finest instincts of a gentleman and 
the highest qualities of a Christian, yearning for social inter- 
course rather than driven to it by the stern behest of duty, un- 



112 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

selfish, singularly free from the gloom of moody hours that 
harass those who are summoned to a perpetual struggle with 
a fiercer temperament, giving way to a smile or a tear at the 
bidding of his own generous impulses, and yet remarkably cool 
and deliberate in expressing an opinion, it is hard to conceive 
of one better endowed for the delicate and often difficult la- 
bors belonging to the pastoral office. It is not strange that 
those to whom he sustained this sacred relation cherish his 
memory with affectionate reverence : it would be passing 
strange could they ever forget him. But the gifts which shone 
in him so conspicuously as a preacher and pastor were equally 
manifest when he appeared in the 

CHURCH JUDICATORIES. 

" He was never absent from these meetings, unless provi- ■ 
dentially detained; and as he had made himself thoroughly 
familiar with the Form of Government and Book of Discipline, 
he was justly considered a most valuable member ot the 
Presbytery and Synod. Few men of his age understood more 
clearly the great principles on which the Constitution of the 
Presbyterian Church securely rests, and none have endured 
more heroically manifold sufferings in defense of these princi- 
ples that have been so grievously outraged during the past ten 
years. In the discussions that arose during the sessions of our 
ecclesiastical bodies he was never known to contend merely 
for victory, and he never resorted to the tricks of the poli- 
ticians to carry his point. He was as far removed as any man 
from self-seeking in his aims, and in this, as well as in his cour- 
teous manner and genial disposition, lay the charm that won 
the affections and confidence of his brethren. He would state 
his views in a brief, pleasant way, and if they did not meet the 
approval of the majority, he would accept defeat without the 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEEILRS, D. D. 113 

slightest exhibition of annoyance. But his opinions were 
usually regarded as sound and satisfactory, and he seldom had 
to regret their rejection. On one occasion he was Moderator 
of the Presbytery of St. Louis during a painful and protracted 
trial of a minister for immorality, and his rulings in every in- 
stance were acquiesced in by the prosecutor, the defendant and 
the entire Court. Passing from these more public scenes, it 
only remains to glance at him in his 

FAMILY 

His wife was admirably fitted to be his companion, for beside 
the ardent devotion of her love, she watched his health with 
unwearying care, and helped him to bear his burdens in a thous- 
and ways that only womanly affection and intuition can suggest. 
Four children were given to them, two sons and two daughters, 
and, perhaps, there was no happier household anywhere. The 
brightness which glowed in his face when he was the center of 
attraction in the social circle did not change to a frown in his 
home, but he carried with him the same pleasantry and playful- 
ness and sweet simplicity that made him a universal favorite. 
His manner toward those who were dearest to his heart was 
never stern and forbidding, but he quietly maintained his 
authority while treating the youngest of them with the famil- 
iarity of an equal. He earnestly sought to bring up his little 
ones in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, and to furnish 
them a practical example of the blessedness which faith in 
Christ can impart and which this poor world can neither give 
nor take away. As the result of his faithful training, assisted 
by his faithful wife, they did not grieve him in their advancing 
years by their disobedience and waywardness, but all who en- 
joyed the high privilege of visiting his delightful home at Mul- 
berry were touched by the tender and thoughtful attention of 
8 



ii4 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



his boys bearing their helpless father on his couch, and by the 
gentle eagerness of his little girls to promote his comfort. 

" The last time the writer saw him he was stretched on that 
couch from which he had preached with such marvelous power 
' the glorious Gospel of the blessed God/ Not only the calm- 
ness of perfect resignation, but the light of a heavenly joy 
encircled his head like a halo and caused his friends to gaze 
upon him with unutterable love. He did not seem to be sick, 
and he was far removed from sorrow. The innocent humor 
that was as natural and necessary to him as breathing came 
welling up to his lips and sparkling in his eye as of old. Not 
a word of bitterness or complaint against those who had so 
cruelly persecuted him was uttered by the meek sufferer, and 
in the shadow of his precious grave indignation gives way to 
sadness, while faith views him in the presence of Jesus and 
rejoices to know that ' there the wicked cease from troubling, 
and there the weary be at rest.' " 

The most eventful period in the life of Dr. McPheeters has 
now been approached; and while the facts of the past must be 
faithfully reported, yet the method of their disclosure should 
indicate, by all means, a spirit not only guileless, but dignified 
and calm. For certainly the biography of a man remarkable 
for gentleness, goodness, meekness and faith, ought not to be 
made the vehicle of bitterness and partisan rage. The truth 
is not dependent upon abuse. The records of history are more 
effective when the story which they tell is divested, in every 
part, of hypocrisy and partiality. While, therefore, the South 
cherishes the witnesses for the truth that exist in her own 
bosom, she can afford to admit freely that in other sections of the 
land there are men and women not a few who have obtained 
like "precious faith." This much, in the start, should be candidly 
and gratefully confessed. Magnanimity is best, for malevolence 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



"5 



and bigotry bring confusion in the end. And yet it can not be 
denied that excellent medicine, the surgeon's probe, the truth 
itself, often give pain, simply because unusual sensibility belongs 
to parts that are diseased. Nevertheless, wise men seek to 
know their infirmities, whether of body or mind, and the anti- 
dote is accepted, even where pain and inconvenience are the ir- 
reversible results. If, then, after all, the narrative that follows 
savors of severity, let it be remembered that the testimony has 
been rehearsed in the language of the witnesses, and the record 
itself, unaltered, tells the whole story. 

In the summer of i860 the health of the over-taxed pastor 
required rest and recreation. Arrangements were accordingly 
made, and Dr. McPheeters, taking his entire household, set 
out for the plains. The journey, in slow stages, was extended 
from point to point until the family reached New Mexico. A 
chaplain's commission having been procured beforehand from 
the United States Government, he began, without delay, to 
preach to the soldiers. He also taught the children of the 
military officers. It was during this stay at Fort Union that 
Dr. McPheeters calculated, altogether for amusement, the 
simplest and most comprehensive interest table to be found in 
existence. The manuscript of this production is in the hands 
of his sons, and it is to be hoped that some enterprising pub- 
lisher will bring it to the light. In reference to Dr. McPheet- 
ers' partiality for figures, the Rev. Robert Morrison observes : 

"There were seasons in his last days when the only way, for 
the time, to forget bodily pain he found to be in solving diffi- 
cult mathematical problems. Especially was he pleased with 
hard algebraic questions. Near by him were the works of dif- 
ferent authors on this subject, all of which he had carefully ex- 
amined and mastered. He eagerly asked me if I could gra- 
tify him by mentioning any knotty algebraic problem. I told 



Il6 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

him I thought I could. I wrote out for him a question that a 
teacher of considerable eminence and experience worked at for 
twelve months ere he solved it. Dr. McPheeters was de- 
lighted at the prospect of something that seemed really diffi- 
cult. He worked day and night on the question alluded to, 
and at the end of two weeks obtained the solution. While 
suffering thus," his active mind sought out and discovered rela- 
tions of numbers not mentioned in any one of our arithmetics 
or algebras." 

The pastor remained at Fort Union until the spring of 1861, 
when the news of the terrible conflict in the States was borne 
across the plains. These war tidings produced a profound and 
depressing effect upon the mind of Dr. McPheeters; for he 
was no Secessionist, but, like the lamented and gifted Thorn- 
well, of South Carolina, clung to the union of the States with 
honest pride and unaffected devotion^ And as a citizen he was 
not slow to express the most intense horror at the prospect of 
national disruption and the dreadful carnage which must inevit- 
ably ensue. Moreover, when there were rumors of an intended 
attempt on the part of the Confederates to capture the Fort, 
although a Southerner by birth and in all his personal sympa- 
thies, he declared, "though the United States Government did 
not commission me to fight, but to preach the Gospel, yet 
should this Fort be attacked I shall be one of its defenders." 
He also exerted decisive influence on the officers who, under 
the strong temptation of sectional sympathy, appeared to waver 
in their fealty. "As a citizen," he said, "I hold it to be a most 
important and indispensable part of my duty to God to obey 
the law, to submit to the authorities, to pray for them, to ren- 
der them the honor due their several stations, and to promote 
peace and quietness. These things, I solemnly declare, I have 
habitually aimed to do." 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



II 7 



In addition to these declarations, Dr. McPheeters, on May 
14, 1 86 1, wrote a pastoral letter from Fort Union, New Mexico, 
to his congregation in St. Louis, in which the pastor carefully 
defines his position and entreats his beloved charge to preserve, 
even in troublous times, " the unity of the spirit in the bonds 
of peace." That communication is addressed " to the Elders, 
Deacons and members ot Pine Street Church," and is as 
follows : 

Dear Christian Brethren : It is to me a subject of continual gratitude 
and thanksgiving to God to hear, as I so frequently have, of your continued 
prosperity and harmony. As far as I know or have heard, " no root of 
bitterness has yet sprung up to trouble you." I rejoice, too, in the evidence 
you have had of the presence and power of the Holy Spirit in bringing so 
large a number to receive and rest upon Christ for salvation. But while 
these and many other things have made me to rejoice, there is one thing 
that has filled me with the deepest sorrow. I allude to the political condition 
of the country. As from time to time intelligence has reached this place 
from the States, my heart has been filled with sadness and gloom beyond 
the power of words to express. For a time I did hope that a merciful and 
long-suffering God would in His providence interpose and shield the country 
from civil war and its necessary horrors. The latest news, however, leaves 
no doubt upon my mind that the Divine Arm is bare to smite our land with 
His terrible but righteous judgment. I think it sure before this communi- 
cation will reach you that a civil war will be begun, the end and results of 
which no human foresight can predict. It has been to me a matter of the 
greatest regret, that at such a time I should, in the providence of God, be 
separated from you ; but as this has been ordered by Him who orders all 
things well, I have neither murmured nor repined. I am now exerting 
myself to return as soon as circumstances will permit ; and yet such are the 
circumstances that surround me and the difficulties of the journey, growing 
out of the confusion and uncertainty of things in the States, that I can not 
say with any certainty when I may expect to have the pleasure of seeing 
you once more face to face. Yet I have a hope that, if arrangements I have 
made or tried to make do not miscarry, it will not be later than the middle 
of July. In this, however, I may be disappointed, and I can only say that 
it is my purpose to return at the earliest practicable time. In these circum- 



Il8 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

stances I feel an irresistible inclination to address you a pastoral letter 
upon some points which it seems to me important to bring distinctly before 
your minds at such a time as this. 

With the purely civil and political questions which now shake the country 
to its centre I do not feel called upon, either as your pastor or as a minister 
of Christ, to speak. I am rejoiced that my duty as well as my inclination 
lead me into a higher, purer and better sphere than this. No, dear brethren, 
I wish to address you not as a friend or advocate of any party or section, 
but as an ambassador of One whose "kingdom is not of this world." So 
far from wishing to swell with my voice the din of words uttered by any 
section or party, I wish to say something about your duties to Christ and 
His kingdom — something about the obligations and dangers which belong 
to you as Christians living in the circumstances which now surround you. 

It is evident, upon the slightest reflection, to one acquainted with the his- 
tory and present condition of our city and its inhabitants, that the Churches 
in St. Louis are exposed to peculiar dangers. One of these, and the most 
obvious and alarming, is that of being rent by discord and strife among its 
members. I am rejoiced to say that up to this time I have not in any way 
heard even a hint that such a state of things exists or is likely to occur. 
Without exception, all the information that has reached me has been of a 
very different character ; still, knowing as I do the diversity of sentiment 
that exists in the city upon the agitating questions of the day, I can not 
doubt that the same diversity exists in the Churches. It is manifest, too, 
from every public print, that late events have intensified, in the highest degree, 
the feelings of all parties. The passions of the whole country are thoroughly 
aroused. I see nothing that is likely to allay these feelings, but much that 
will, I think, beyond question, greatly excite them. The members of the 
Church are thrown together in social intercourse, in business relations, and 
in meetings for devotion, and who need be told that in such circumstances 
there is the utmost danger of angry and bitter discussions arising, which, 
even from small beginnings may extend to numbers, and result in parties 
and divisions in the Church. Nay, there is even danger that in your social 
meetings, and in the solemn act of prayer, some one may forget that, in 
that act, he is called upon to be the mouthpiece of the congregation, to 
express the common desires and wishes of his Christian brethren, and in 
prayer itself he may so present his own private and party views as deeply to 
wound and offend those who differ from him. 

What, however, I wish to do is not to attempt to tell how the evil may 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M PHEETERS, D. D. 



II 9 



arise, but to call your attention to the danger to which the times expose the 
Church. But how, it may be asked, shall such a state of things be pre- 
vented ? It is certainly not to be expected that political matters so momen- 
tous as these which now engross all minds will not be discussed. Nor is 
it to be expected that those who look at the same events with different 
feelings, and from fundamentally different standpoints are likely to agree in 
the conclusions which they reach. It must, moreover, be admitted, that as 
between man and man, one has as good a right to his opinion as another ; 
and it must be further admitted that men may differ upon such matters after 
having made, as they believe, an honest examination of the questions 
involved. How, then, is the danger to be avoided ? The obvious answer 
is, by all the members of the Church being conscientiously guarded in what 
they say — by the exercise of charity, and by a spirit of prayer. My dear 
brethren, at such a time as this the sins of the tongue (at all times a fruit- 
ful source of sin) are likely to be pre-eminently the sins of Christians. It 
is so easy, so natural for men excited and irritated to say words of bitterness 
and wrath that few can resist the temptation. And very many who profess 
to be Christians practically say, in the very words of the wicked, "our lips 
are our own ; who is Lord over us ? " Yet what saith the Scriptures ? " If 
any man among you seemeth to be religious and bridleth not his 
tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. " If 
Christians allow themselves to indulge in all the vindictive and abusive lan- 
guage used by avowedly irreligious men, where is the evidence of subjection 
to Christ — of a heart renewed after His image? Therefore, beloved 
brethren, "let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that 
ye may know how ye ought to answer every man." " Let all bitterness 
and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you, 
with all malice, and be ye kind one to another, tender hearted, forgiving 
one another, even as God, for Christ's sake, hath forgiven you." 

There were several other matters upon which I intended to say a word, 
but I am prevented from doing so by want of time. One thing, however, 
I can not omit. I have sometimes feared that the unhappy spirit which now 
pervades and divides the country will appear also in the General Assembly 
of the Church, and cause a division there. If such an event should unfor- 
tunately occur, I am exceedingly anxious that you should not be hasty in 
taking any steps to unite with either side in the division that may arise— at 
least that nothing shall be done to commit the Church until we have an 
opportunity of conferring together. I do not think that any of your inter- 



120 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



ests will suffer by a little delay; and it may be that, even if the next 
Assembly, carried away by the excitement now pervading the country, shall 
be rent in twain, that the Presbyteries and Churches may not ratify their 
acts. But my heart's desire and prayer to God is that no such calamity may 
befall our beloved Church. Whatever may be the results of the present 
divisions existing in the country, God grant that the Presbyterian Church 
may remain a united and harmonious body. 

And now, dear brethren, farewell until we meet again. I have written this 
in great heaviness of heart, amid many personal anxieties and perplexities, and 
I doubt not that it will find many of you pressed by your own sorrows and trials. 
But let us not be discouraged. If we love Christ and are faithful to the end, 
there is a bright and glorious home where we shall meet — a home which 
shall never be invaded by sickness and death— a home that shall never be 
rent by strife and faction — a home which shall not be startled by the battle 
of the warrior with ' 6 confused noise and garments rolled in blood. " Thanks 
be to God through our Lord Jesus Christ there is such a home for any of 
us, and for all of us. O, let none of us forget that home, in thinking of this 
which is not our home. Let none of us fail of that by being unfaithful in 
this. That the grace of Christ may rest upon you, is the prayer of your 
affectionate friend and pastor. 

At the appointed time Dr. McPheeters returned to St. Louis. 
The pastoral letter had gone before, and everything promised 
well. The people welcomed the preacher with open arms and 
sympathetic hearts ; for now more than ever the congregation 
needed the prayers and counsels of a faithful, devoted and 
judicious minister "to go in and out among them." The very 
presence of a pastor so long known and trusted, it was hoped, 
would prove " an excellent oil." Dr. McPheeters fully com- 
prehended the situation and determined fearlessly to take a true 
and scriptural position before the Church and the world, be 
the sacrifice what it might ; for he foresaw that in the 
diversity of political thought which divided the community, it 
would be a death-blow to ministerial influence in any man to 
advocate, as a partisan, the particular views which were enter- 
tained either by Federals or Confederates. In the times of this 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



121 



distress, therefore, the pastor wisely resolved not to know "any 
thing save Jesus Christ and Him crucified." Having taken an 
oath of allegiance to the United States Government with the 
purpose in good faith to keep it, he implored his entire flock 
to be satisfied with this, and thereby hold up the pastor's hands 
in his honest effort to be the minister of the Lord Jesus to all. 
How, under these circumstances, the spirit of persecution arose 
will be faithfully developed in the sequel. 



122 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



CHAPTER VII. 

COLUMBUS ASSEMBLY — CORRESPONDENCE WITH G. P. STRONG 
AND OTHERS. 

In the year 1862 the Assembly met at Columbus, Ohio. At 
the appointed time Dr. R. J. Breckinridge introduced a paper 
which abounds in bitter epithets and the most discreditable 
charges against the Presbyterians of the South. It is alleged that 
they have been guilty of "treason," " rebellion," "anarchy," 
"violence," "fraud," "disloyalty," "schism," "disturbance," 
"conspiracy," " horrible treason," "disloyal and traitorous at- 
tempts," "blasphemy," &c. The perusal of this document 
excites emotions peculiarly painful, when it is remembered that 
its author was nourished and brought up in the bosom of the 
Southern Church, and that her people in former days had zeal- 
ously defended him against aspersions repeated over and over 
again by ecclesiastical enemies at the North. It was hoped 
that in the hour of her calamity and sorrow the man whom she 
had delighted to honor would, to a measurable extent at least, 
be influenced by the memories and associations of the past. 
These expectations, however, were miserably disappointed. 
Dr. Breckinridge not only denounced "Christian people through- 
out all the revolted States," but having exhausted the catalogue 
of invective in that direction, turns to the gentle pastor of 
Pine Street Church and proclaims him a traitor. To the cruel 
accusation brought against himself, Dr. McPheeters replied : 
" Sir, the Church, as such, owes its allegiance only to Jesus 
Christ. His kingdom is the only kingdom she is bound to 
uphold. His Word is the only constitution that she recognizes 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



123 



as authoritative or is at liberty to interpret. The constitution 
of the State binds the citizen. . The citizen by becoming a 
Christian comes into no new relations to the State. If you 
shall pass this paper I shall stand in my lot and do my duty. 
Your doing what I believe to be wrong will not justify me in 
doing wrong. For one I have already stood for a year under 
a deliverance which in conscience I believe to be ecclesiastically 
wrong. If you pass this paper I will try to make the best of it. 
So long as you do not require me to do or say anything which, 
in the sight of God, I believe to be wrong, and do not hinder 
doing or saying anything I believe to be right — as I do not 
think you intend to do such a thing — I expect to remain true 
to all my duties to the Church." 

Notwithstanding all that was done, in the judgment of im- 
partial minds, Dr. McPheeters clearly gained the advantage 
of Dr. Breckinridge on the floor of the Assembly, and from 
this time onward, in the opinion of the country at large, one man 
"increased" while the other just as manifestly "decreased." 

Encouraged, no doubt, by the action of the Columbus 
Assembly, a small faction in the Pine Street congregation ad- 
dressed to Dr. McPheeters a communication, dated St. Louis, 
June 1 8th, in which they make minute inquiries in regard to 
the pastor's loyalty, and also declare " that the baptism of the 
child of Samuel Robbins, in our Church, on the 8th instant, by 
the name of that arch rebel and traitor, Sterling Price, we regard 
as a premeditated insult to the government and all its friends 
in the Pine Street Church. We consider it nothing less than 
a public and sacrilegious prostitution of a sacred ordinance of 
God's house, to the gratification, on his part, of the most con- 
temptible and malicious feelings of hostility to 'the powers that 
be.' " This letter was signed by George P. Strong and twenty- 
nine others. On July 8th Dr. McPheeters replied as follows : 



124 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



Dear Brethren : Your communicaton, dated June 18 (the day after I 
had left the city for a trip to St. Paul), was handed to me immediately on 
my return, with the request that I would, at my convenience, give you a 
written answer. 

To go into a full consideration of all that the communication contains 
would require a much longer reply than I deem it necessary for me to make. 
I shall, therefore, omit everything but such points as, after a careful read- 
ing of the paper, I consider important or proper for me to notice. 

Your communication relates to my views and conduct as a minister of 
the Gospel, and also to my views and conduct as a citizen of the Common- 
wealth ; and it is of the utmost importance that the duties, obligations and 
responsibilities which grow out of this twofold relation of minister and 
citizen should not be confounded. It is not a distinction without a differ- 
ence, unless the distinction between the Church and the State is also a dis- 
tinction without a difference. In discharging my duties as a minister of 
the Gospel I am bound by the Word of God, and I have accepted the 
standards of the Presbyterian Church as a true exposition of the Scriptures 
in relation both to faith and. practice, and my responsibility for the faithful 
discharge of these duties is to the Head of the Church, and under Him to 
the Presbytery to which I belong. In the discharge ot my distinctive 
duties as a citizen I am bound by the laws of the land, and my responsi- 
bility is to the civil authority ; but, since my civil duties are, at the same 
time, religious duties, my Presbytery may also inquire into my neglect of 
any of my civil duties. I mention these very plain things for the purpose 
of setting at rest any claim which you, brethren, or any number of gentle- 
men, have, either as Church members or as citizens, to demand as a matter 
of right an answer from me to such a paper as that presented. It is per- 
fectly manifest that no such right exists, and if it were distinctly and 
formally claimed, I would be compelled to resist it. It is, moreover, with 
me a question of very grave doubt whether I should permit feelings of 
courtesy and personal regard to lead me even to appear to lend the influ- 
ence of my example to a practice which, if it should become common, 
would, I am persuaded, destroy the harmony and mar the peace of all our 
Churches. For, brethren, if you may ask of me as your pastor a written 
answer to a paper going over the whole field of a great national convulsion, 
involving not simply questions of moral right and wrong, but also ques- 
tions of constitutional law and most intricate questions of State policy, then 
what questions may you not ask and demand of me my answer? If a 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 1 25 

pastor begins such a course, upon what principle can he ever stop? If one 
portion of his congregation may rightfully and wisely call upon him to de- 
fine his position on public affairs, ma^ not another portion do the same? 
If wise and judicious members of a congregation begin such a course, may 
not the unwise and injudicious feel called upon to imitate their example ? 
Does not the principle, if once admitted, and the practice, if once estab- 
lished, throw every pastor helpless into the hands of any party or faction 
that may at any time arise in his congregation ? But while I feel con- 
strained to call your attention to the very dangerous principle which such a 
course involves, and while I must and do solemnly declare that I will not 
admit this to be a precedent by which I will be governed in the future, yet 
such is my disposition to treat you personally with courtesy, and your wishes 
with respect, that I shall proceed to make such statements as in my judg- 
ment should be satisfactory. 

As to my position as a minister of the Gospel, those of you who have 
been longest connected with my church will bear me testimony that from 
the time I came to this city, now more than eleven years ago, to the present 
day, I have never on any occasion, or under any pretext, introduced 
into the pulpit any matter of a political kind ; that I have uniformly con- 
demned the practice as contrary to the example of the inspired Apostles — 
as evil in itself, evil to the Church, and evil to the State. 

I have over and often, and long before our present troubles began, ex- 
plained to you my views of the relation of the Church and the State; how 
both are ordained of God, but ordained for different purposes ; that they 
move in different orbits, have different ends to accomplish, and that they 
are independent the one of the other. Upon all these subjects my convic- 
tions, so far from being changed, are confirmed; and whether you agree 
with me or not, I can and do appeal to ^very one of you, and to all who 
know me, that my whole teaching and practice upon these subjects have 
been uniform and consistent during the entire time I have ministered to 
you ; and I can only say that my conduct and views upon all these matters 
being the result of religious convictions, that until these convictions are 
changed there is nothing left for me but steadfastly to continue, through 
good report and through evil report, to do as I have done. I certainly 
shall not allow idle and baseless rumors circulated through the community 
by silly or malicious persons to turn me from a course I have deliberately 
and long since adopted as a matter of conscience. 

It was during my absence in New Mexico that the angry clouds, which 



126 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D.' 

had long lowered above the political horizon, burst upon the land in the 
fearful storm of civil war. With startling rapidity the country passed from 
argument to arms. When I got back the discussion was over — the war 
begun. All this I learned with feelings of unutterable sorrow, as from 
time to time I received intelligence from the States. I saw then as dis- 
tinctly as I see now, that the country was to be involved in a fierce, bloody 
and desolating war. Isolated as I then was, outside of the currents that 
were moving the whole country, I considered carefully and prayerfully 
what course I would pursue upon my return. I will not pretend that the 
conclusion I reached was absolutely correct. I will even admit that a con- 
stitutional abhorrence which I have to strife of every kind may have unduly 
influenced my mind. Be that as it may, I formed the deliberate purpose 
to have just as little to do with the political troubles of the country as I 
could — to exert myself to the utmost to calm the passions and soothe the 
asperities of all parties, and in my pulpit to hold up these great truths of 
the gospel which, important at all times, are especially important in times 
like this. I believed then, and I believe now, that in this way I should 
render the best service it was in my power to render, either to the Church 
or to the State. The course thus marked out I can honestly say I have 
endeavored to follow. 

There are two matters mentioned in the communication before me which 
require me to say a word by way of explanation. The first relates to the 
baptism of the child of Mr. Robbins, by the name of Sterling Price, which 
seems to have been the immediate occasion of this paper. Now, I wi-sh 
you to bear in mind that my entire agency in that whole matter was just what 
was seen by the congregation, and no more. The parents never consulted me 
as to the name their child was to bear, nor did either of them ever tell me 
what it was until, in the very act of administering the sacrament, I asked 
them. I clearly had no option in the matter. Our Directory of Worship, 
chapter vi'i, section 5, says: 4 4 The minister is to pray for a blessing to 
attend the ordinance, after which, calling the child by its name, he is to 
say — I baptize thee, &c. This is all that I did. I had no right to decline 
doing it, and it never once crossed my mind that I was doing anything for 
which any reasonable person, knowing the circumstances, could or would 
blame me. Nor do I see how any one of you, placed in my circumstances, 
could have acted differently without assuming an authority which did not be- 
long to the ministerial office. One of the signers of this paper is the clerk of 
Session. Will he refuse to enter that child's name upon the Church Reg- 



MEMOIR OF. S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



I2 7 



ister ? I suppose not. But why, I ask, should my simply official act in 
pronouncing a name be considered in a different light from his official act in 
recording the same name upon the public register of the Church ? And I 
can not help saying, that when this paper charges Mr. Robbins with "sac- 
rilegeously prostituting a sacred ordinance of God's house to the gratification 
of contemptible and malicious feelings of hostility to the powers that be," 
that in my judgment such language is exceedingly harsh and uncharitable — 
for I have it from his own lips, that he had no purpose of doing any such 
thing as is attributed to him. We should not charge any one with motives 
which they distinctly deny. 

The other point upon which I wish to say a word is in relation to the 
public prayer in the sanctuary for the civil authorities. Paul, in his first 
epistle to Timothy, who was a minister, exhorts him "to pray for kings and 
all who are in authority, that we (Christians) may lead a quiet and peacea- 
ble life in all godliness and honesty." The rule here laid down plainly 
makes it the duty of all who conduct the public worship of God's house to 
ask for God's blessing upon all the civil rulers of the earth; for the 
expresssion is not the king, but "for kings and all who are in authority," 
and the idea is that God having a Church scattered through the world, the 
Church is to pray that God would so bless and guide all civil rulers that 
they may not hinder the Church in its work. If, however, it is a duty to 
pray for the civil rulers in all the world, much more is it the duty of the 
Church to pray for those who stand in immediate relation to particular por- 
tions of it. But when the Church of God unites in prayer for the civil 
authorities there is no expression on her part of approbation or of disappro- 
bation of either their personal character or civil administration. The duty has 
remained the same through all the changes of men and measures which 
have taken place for eighteen hundred years. And when this inspired com- 
mand was given to ministers Nero was Emperor of Rome. As a minister, 
and in my official capacity, I am bound — yes, and private Christians, too, 
are bound — to pray for those in authority over us, whether we like or dis- 
like, whether we approve or disapprove of the civil acts done by them. 
This is very plain ; and it is just as plain that neither the Scriptures, the 
Church of God, nor Christianity k7tow anything of prayer as a means of show- 
ing loyalty, or of praying up to the require?nents of some popular standard 
of loyalty. If I were living in the dominions of the Sultan of Turkey I 
would pray for kings and all who are in authority, and especially for him, 
and had I lived under the administration of Washington, I would have done 



128 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHE£TERS, D. D. 



no more. Of course, then, I have no objections, and in the very nature of 
the case could have none, to "praying for the President of these United 
States." It is just what I have done during every administration since I 
became a minister, and it is just what I expect to do. It is true, I seldom 
use that form, having generally offered prayer for kings and. all who are in 
authority, and more especially for those who are in authority over us. My 
reasons for this are — First \ it is a Scriptural form; second, it is very com- 
prehensive ; third, it is in general the form I have used since the beginning 
of my ministry. And it seems to me as simply ludicrous to say that the form — 
"those who are in authority over us" — leaves the matter in doubt as to the 
person meant. If any one feels any doubt as to "who are in authority 
over us," and will express that doubt publicly, his doubts will speedily be 
solved. 

Nov/, as to my purposes as a citizen, I have but a word to say. Whatever 
duties I have learned, or may hereafter learn, from the Word of God (which 
is my rule of faith and practice) to be incumbent upon me, I shall endeavor 
in time to come, as I have in time past, to perform. Before I came to this 
State I did on two occasions take an oath of allegiance to the Constitution 
of the United States. To me that oath has not grown old. The God by 
whose name I swore is the ' ' living God. 5 ' When the Convention of the 
State of Missouri, at its last session, enacted a law requiring an oath from 
those who solemnize the civil part of the marriage contract, I felt it to be 
my duty to take it. I expressed my purpose to do so before I left home 
for St. Paul. I have taken it since my return. I mention these dates to 
show you that neither this paper nor any circumstances which have subse- 
quently occurred influenced my decision on that point. 

In conclusion, brethren, let me say that this reply has been dictated by 
feelings of kindness ; my great aim has been to promote the peace and unity 
of the Church, and to prevent any root of bitterness from springing up to 
trouble us. I hope you will receive it in the same spirit in which it is 
written. When I was ordained, I vowed before God and His Church that 
I would "study the peace, unity and purity of the Church." All of you 
who are, or have been, office-bearers in the Church have taken and are 
bound by the same solemn vows, and every member of the Church is under 
the same obligation. There is absolutely no question now before us affect- 
ing the purity of the Church. There is, therefore, nothing which, in the 
sight of God, can justify any of us in disturbing its peace and unity. Up to 
the present time, by the great mercy of God, our Church has moved on in 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 1 29 

peace and harmony. There has been, as there should have been, a dispo- 
sition to exercise mutual forbearance upon points about which you differed. 
Let this continue. It is what the Lord Jesus requires of us all. The 
interests we meet in God's house to promote are infinitely above any or all 
the interests of time. We are not only citizens of the State, but we 
are also citizens of a kingdom not of this world. The dreadful contest now 
going on is one to which the Church, as such, is not a party ; let us all see 
to it that she is not made a victim. Those who handed me this paper told 
me that I was to consider it as coming from my friends. I have so treated 
it ; and this answer is not written with any design of being published ; and 
I give it to you with the express understanding that no part of it is to be 
published without my consent. 

After this letter of Dr. McPheeters reached its destination 
certain members of the " Pine Street Church who were in favor 
of sustaining the Government of the United States in its efforts 
to put down the rebellion raised against it, held a meeting on 
the 15th of October, 1862, when Mr. Joshua H. Alexander was 
called to the Chair and Richard Holme appointed Secretary." 

By request of the meeting, the answer of Rev. S. B. McPheeters to the 
communication addressed to him in June last, inquiring whether he was a 
friend of the Government and desired its authority re-established, or a friend 
of the rebellion and desired its success, was read and discussed. 

It was then unanimously resolved, That the answer was not satisfactory, 
for the reason that it entirely omitted to inform us whether Mr. McPheeters 
was a friend or an enemy of the Government of the United States. 

It was further resolved, That inasmuch as the communication of June 
1 8th, 1862, was addressed to our pastor for the purpose of ascertaining the 
truth or falsity of reports, very current in St. Louis and elsewhere, that he 
sympathized with the rebellion and desired the success of the Southern 
States in their attempt to dismember the Union and establish a Southern 
Confederacy, and also to relieve our Church of the odium of being a seces- 
sion Church, which was fast settling upon it, owing to the silence of our 
pastor and the active disloyalty of many of its members, and inasmuch as 
the omission of any reply to the inquiries made of our pastor has left us 
without the means of contradicting the reports and correcting the very gen- 
eral opinion of his disloyalty at heart, and inasmuch as he requests that his 

9 



130 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

answer shall not be published, and as its publication would only confirm the 
opinion of his disloyalty, that, therefore, his answer be returned to him as 
wholly unsatisfactory. 

It was further resolved, That at a time when the existence of the Gov- 
ernment, under which we have enjoyed unequaled civil and religious privi- 
leges, is seriously threatened by a rebellion of unparalleled atrocity and 
wickedness, we deem it the duty of every man to encourage and sustain 
our rulers in their efforts to overthrow the power of the rebels and re-establish 
the Union. And we are unwilling to countenance by our attendance a Church 
whose moral influence encourages the rebellion and where treason is unre- 
buked; and unless our pastor can find it consistent with his feelings and con- 
victions of duty to make himself known as a friend of the Government under 
which he lives, and, in leading the public devotions of his people, can pray 
for the success of that Government in putting down armed resistance to its 
authority, we shall feel constrained to abandon a Church to which we are 
devotedly attached until a cordial obedience to the lawfully constituted 
authorities of the State and opposition to treason are taught from the pulpit 
and by the private influence and example of the pastor. 

Resolved t That a committee of three be appointed to return to Rev. Mr. 
McPheeters the answer above referred to, and also to furnish him with a 
copy of these resolutions, signed by the Secretary and Chairman of this 
meeting. 

Messrs. Thompson, Morrison and Strong were appointed on that com- 
mittee. 

On November 3d Dr. McPheeters replied : 

Gentlemen : The series of resolutions purporting to have been adopted 
"at a meeting of the members of Pine Street Presbyterian Church who 
are in favor of sustaining the Government of the United States in its efforts 
to put down the rebellion raised against it," which you were appointed to 
hand me, I have received, and having considered them, I request you to 
submit to the organization which you represent the following as my reply : 

Before I begin, however, let me call your attention to what, if not a 
clerical error, must not be permitted to pass without notice. You say, "at 
a meeting of the members of Pine Street Church, in favor of sustaining the 
Government," &c. Perhaps you intended to say, "at a meeting" of some 
or a few "of the members," &c, for you will hardly claim that the eighteen 
or twenty who composed your meeting are all of the members of Pine Street 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 131 

Church who are in favor of sustaining the Government? If you think so, 
it may be as well to tell you that there are many others quite as earnest as 
yourselves "in sustaining the Government" who were not with you in 
your meeting, and who are not likely to be with you in your present move- 
ment. For, let me further tell you, that the real questions in controversy 
between us are not, as I will presently show, questions as to the duty of 
citizens to sustain their Government, nor questions as to the right or wrong 
of the efforts made to dismember the Union, nor questions of loyalty or 
disloyalty, but questions of a very different kind, viz. : What is the relation 
of a pastor to his people ? — what rights does it involve ? Is it purely eccle- 
siastical and spiritual, or is it ecclesiastical and political ? And your pre- 
amble would have been far more accurate if it had been couched in some 
such language as this: "At a meeting of some of the members of Pine 
Street Presbyterian Church, who claim that a pastor is bound to give a 
formal answer to such civil and political questions as his people may see 
good to ask him, it was resolved, ' ' &c. For the main point in your resolu- 
tions is just this, that I omitted to answer the questions you propounded to 
me in your paper of June last. 

A word now as to that paper. It was gotten up, you remember, during 
my temporary absence on a trip to St. Paul, and was handed to me on my 
return. I read it not only with astonishment, but sorrow. The claim, 
which it quietly assumed, that the members of my church had a right to 
demand of me, as their pastor, a written answer to such questions as were 
there asked, struck me as so unheard of and absurd ; the yielding to such a 
claim seemed to me so evil and dangerous a precedent ; some of the lan- 
guage used I thought, upon a fair construction, to be personally so offen- 
sive, and the whole proceeding I regarded as so irregular and unpresbyte- 
rian that my first impulse was to return it without a word. But upon learn- 
ing something of the history of the paper, that in the getting up it was the 
work of one or two individuals* who wrote and handed it around for signa- 
tures, and knowing how easily, by plausible representations, signatures 
might be obtained, and being morally certain that many who signed it had 
no purpose whatever of disturbing the peace of the Church, and charitably 
thinking that the language to which I made exception might be explained 
by the author of the paper (which, in private, he has subsequently done), 
and hoping that a reply might be made which, while it yielded nothing as 
to the right of asking such questions of me as a pastor, might at once tend 
to the harmony of the Church and to the satisfaction of those who wished 



132 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



to be satisfied, I determined to return a reply, and to answer such parts 
of the paper as I " deemed it important or proper for me to notice. " Upon 
all the matters relating to my pastoral and ministerial duties I aimed to be 
full and explicit. Upon my duties and opinions as a citizen, while I en- 
tered a formal protest against the right of Church members to question me 
about my opinions on such matters, I, nevertheless, so far waived the 
matter as to tell you explicitly that as far as I knew I discharged to the best 
of my ability all the duties of a citizen enjoined upon me by the Word of 
God or the laws of the land. But I did purposely and of deliberate design 
omit a formal answer to the questions which you asked me, because, while 
I was willing to do almost anything not in itself wrong to prevent discord, 
I felt that it would be wrong to yield to so pernicious a claim as I then sus- 
pected and am now convinced was there set up. 

Before the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church I solemnly and 
formally denied the right of any ecclesiastical body, from the highest to the 
lowest, to question a minister upon his political opinions, and as you saw 
good to deny that position, it was hardly to be expected that I would yield 
it when claimed by a few members of my Church who had no right to 
question me judicially upon my theological, much less my political, opinions. 

When my reply was prepared, I publicly requested the signers of the 
paper to meet me at a time and place designated. At that meeting, a ma- 
jority of the signers of the first paper being present, I read my answer and 
we had a free conversation on the whole subject. The interview was pleasant 
and, as I supposed, satisfactory. Several who were present expressed them- 
selves (if language can convey thoughts) as entirely satisfied; others thought 
the whole thing would do good and tend to the harmony of the Church. 
And the impression made upon my mind, and I think would have been 
made upon the mind of any person present, was. that the whole had come 
to a happy and satisfactory conclusion, and when the meeting adjourned it 
was with mutual congratulations. I ought in justice to say that neither of 
the two gentlemen who drew up the paper were present at this meeting, 
both of them being at the time out of the city temporarily, and that upon 
their return and reading my answer they told me frankly that it was not 
what they hoped and desired it should be. 

Some of the signers of the first paper who were present at the meeting 
just mentioned have shown that they were and are satisfied, by refusing to 
have anything further to do with the matter. Others who were there, and 
who were among the first to express, in most distinct and devout language, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



*33 



their joy at the " happy result of the whole matter," I find now among the 
" unanimous " in declaring their dissatisfaction, nay, in returning my paper 
as "wholly unsatisfactory." Of this I do not complain. I freely grant 
that men have a right to change their opinions, and to learn what should 
satisfy them ; and three months and a half is a long period in times like 
these. But let this go. I return to the true and only point at issue between 
us, which is this : You claim the right, in virtue of the relation which exists 
between us as pastor and people, to ask and receive my written opinion 
and personal position upon civil and political questions no way connected 
with my office and duty as a minister of the gospel. That this claim was 
set up by the movers in this matter I suspected, as I have intimated, when 
I read your paper of June last. That it is now distinctly announced seems 
to be plain beyond dispute, since you have organized yourselves, with chair- 
man and secretary, and send your committee to deliver the resolves which 
you have taken, in case I fail to yield the claim by practical obedience. 

Now, gentlemen, before I can yield what you demand you must show 
me what foundation your claim has in reason, Scripture, or the standards of 
the Presbyterian Church, and until you do this I must tell you plainly that 
this claim I utterly deny and feel compelled to resist. And I do now resist 
it by refusing to be catechised by you; by again declining any answers to 
questions of the kind which you propound ; by making no promise of obe- 
dience to your demands, and by refusing to plead at your bar. And this 
position I take, not from any disposition to stand out captiously upon an 
abstract question of right, nor from any disposition improperly to conceal 
my views on political questions, but from a conscientious conviction that I 
can not yield the thing you claim without, to the full extent of my example, 
compromising the rights of every minister and endangering the peace of 
all our churches. The claim of right to ask and receive an answer from 
your pastor to such questions clearly rests on an unscriptural and dangerous 
error as to the pastoral relation itself. It is in no sense and to no degree 
a civil and political relation. It has no concernment with men, viewed in 
any other light than as citizens of "a kingdom not of this world." All of 
the duties and rights which belong to the relation of pastor and people grow 
out of relations which they bear to Christ and his Church, and the moment 
we cut loose from this we are at sea without chart or compass. If a pastor 
begins to answer such questions as you ask, where can he consistently stop ? 
Let him once yield the right to some, and he can not consistently deny it to 
any. Let him once begin to give his written opinion and personal position 



134 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



as pastor upon any of these questions, no matter how important i?i them- 
selves, and how long will it be before he will be called upon as a pastor to take 
his official position upon the various questions of State policy which arise; 
. to express and defend, as a minister of the gospel, his views upon the pro- 
clamations and orders at any time issued by the government? The magni- 
tude and profoundly interesting character of the questions about which you 
asked my views do not in any degree alter my position ; nay, it is to me 
a matter of gratitude that, since the question has come up, it has risen, 
not upon any subordinate question of party politics, but upon questions 
which, in their civil aspect, are nationally important and vital. Because, by 
resisting the whole claim here, I resist it everywhere. By testifying against 
it under these circumstances, and at what personal perils and penalties I 
know not, I am enabled to bear testimony against the whole system of 
church secularization, which I solemnly believe is a sign of the times, and 
w r hich, if carried out, will end in degrading the ministers of the gospel into 
politicians, and the Church itself into a thing of State. 

You may think that I am alarmed at a chimera, that the danger I seek to 
avoid is only in my imagination. I might be persuaded to believe this if I 
had not learned what has taken place in many parts of the Church and seen 
what has fallen under my own observation. Nay, gentlemen, if you will but 
look at your own course you will see that my fears are not imaginary. 
While I was in New Mexico, when I was entirely ignorant of the views of 
any of you, I prepared a pastoral letter, declaring my purpose, as your pas- 
tor, to avoid intermeddling with these exciting political questions, and urging 
the members of the Church not to permit them to come into the house of 
God. And when I returned I told you distinctly that it was my purpose 
not only not to introduce them into my pulpit, but as far as possible to stand 
aloof from them as an individual. 

Withoict exception you approved of my course. It was, you all told me, 
what you desired. I remember the individuals among you who said, " we 
have the war all the week, and want the gospel on Sunday." "I hear you 
with respect when you expound the Scriptures, but I believe I understand 
political matters as well or better than you do ;" and well do I remember the 
mortification and indignation which one of your number expressed when a 
military officer of high rank made a patriotic instead of a religious address 
in the Sunday School with which he is connected. Thus things stood for 
months. The first intimation I had of any change in your views was in the 
paper of June last. I then learned that some of you were changing your 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D 



ground. Still, even in that paper, you say, "we do not desire from you, as 
we have before stated, any ostentatious or pulpit manifestations of attachment 
to the government, unless it should be considered such to pray in public for 
the President of the United States, and those who are in authority under 
him," &c. In my reply I distinctly told you that I considered it as clearly a 
duty enjoined in the Scriptures to pray for those in authority, and as the 
President of the United States undoubtedly had authority over us, that I did 
and would continue to pray for him. Again the majority seemed satisfied. 
And now, after three months and a half, you come and tell me, " unani- 
mously," that you are not satisfied, and will not be satisfied until the whole 
subject is prayed over and discussed from the pulpit ! And what you will 
desire and demand three months and a half hence, who can tell? I, there- 
fore, call attention to your own course as a thorough vindication of the wisdom 
and necessity of mine, that I did not resist unreasonable demands too soon, 
if I intended to resist at all. 

In your former paper, and in the one now before me, you refer to * ' reports 
here and elsewhere affecting my loyalty," and you tell me that the sole 
object of the paper of June last, with reference to me, was to ascertain the 
truth or falsity of these rumors. All that I can say is, that it that was the 
"sole object " you adopted a very unfortunate way of accomplishing it when 
you place before me the alternative of yielding to a most dangerous and 
unreasonable claim, or remaining silent. With my views of right and duty 
I could not hesitate which alternative to choose. I had rather endure false 
assumptions of rights. Ricniors are things of a day — rights are perpetual. 

I am not ignorant of the fact that rumors have been circulated, and 
printed, too, charging me, directly or indirectly, with disloyalty. I know, 
also, that it is a day of rumors and falsehood and detraction. And the 
only notice I have felt called upon to take of these things has been to con- 
tradict them by the quiet tenor of my life. I have thought, yea, and I still 
think, that the "rumors of disloyalty" need not alarm one who, recog- 
nizing civil government as "ordained of God," has been "subject" -unto 
it, "not only for wrath, but for conscience sake; " who, in obedience to the 
divine command, has "submitted himself to every ordinance of man for the 
Lord's sake; " who has " rendered to all their dues — tribute to whom trib- 
ute is due, custom to whom custom, fear to whom fear, and honor to whom 
honor," and who, in public and private, has prayed for those who are in 
authority. 

All this I claim to have done habitually and as a part of my duty to God. 



136 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



And to bring this matter to an issue, let me say, there are civil, military 
and ecclesiastical courts, and that I do now challenge any and all men — all 
makers and spreaders and endorsers of these rumors — to prove before any 
one of these tribunals an act that I have done or a word that I have said 
that a good citizen has not a perfect right to do or say. I can not, however, 
dismiss " these rumors of disloyalty" without calling your attention to the 
fact that one of your resolutions may, and in all probability will, be taken 
as giving them a quasi endorsement. Now if, with the knowledge some of 
you have, your conscience and self-respect will allow you to do this, I have 
nothing to say but what my own self-respect forbids my saying. Of one 
thing I am certain, that I can far better afford to have such charges made 
than any good man can afford to make them. So much for the rumors 
which have me for their object. 

A word now as to those who charge Pine Street Church as being a 
"secession church." If by a "secession church" is meant that there are 
a number of its members or attendants who hold the political dogma that a 
State has a right to secede from the Federal Union, I have to confess that I 
do not know whether the charge is true or false, for I do not know the 
views of one in ten on these subjects. And if any one should say that our 
church is a Democratic church, or a Republican church, or an Uncondi- 
tional Union Emancipation church, or a President's Proclamation church, 
using all of these appellatives in the same sense, I would be equally at a loss 
to affirm or deny. I know but little of the political opinions of the members 
of my church, never having assumed the right of catechising them. But that 
Pine Street Church is a "secession church" in the sense that such doctrines 
are taught from its pulpit, or inculcated by its pastor, or in any manner or 
to any degree characterize its worship, government or discipline, is what 
no man will dare to say who has one principle of truth, honor or honesty. 
When Pine Street Church becomes a secession church, or any other kind of 
church but a Church of Jesus Christ, for one I will turn from it with the 
loathing that I would feel for a bride who has deserted her husband to 
follow another. But while it remains true to Christ, the attempt, either 
directly or indirectly, to darken its name with so odious a slander is a fearful 
sin, and God will not hold men guiltless who commit it. 

I will not close this communication without telling you that I greatly 
regret the course wdiich you have been led to adopt in this whole matter. 
It must strike every Presbyterian as, to say the least, unusual. The first 
intimation I had of any dissatisfaction in the Church was the formal paper 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



137 



of June last. Not a word had been said to me in private on the subject, 
and yet, from the intimacy that existed between myself and not a few of your 
number, this was what I felt that I had a right to expect ; but, not to insist 
upon this, which is only a question of propriety, I must insist that, if action 
was to be taken concerning things affecting the interest of the Church, the 
Church Session was the only proper body to move in the matter. Accord- 
ing to the Presbyterian form of government, " the Church Session is charged 
with maintaining the spiritual government of the congregation." It is " to 
concert the best means for promoting its spiritual interests." Surely the 
matters which you thought so gravely affecting the spiritual interests of the 
Church should have been at least brought before this body, which, accord- 
ing to our standards, has that matter in charge. There was no difficulty in 
getting either a formal or informal hearing in that court, as the two origin- 
ators of this movement were both of them members of the Session ; yet 
not a word was said in the Session — they were not consulted, nor even 
informed as to what was going on ; and now you have formed an organiza- 
tion in thejClrJrch itself, which, according to your own preamble, seems to 
me to be jlistiictly and professedly political, and by formal resolutions tell 
me what 1 mvkt preach and what I must pray, declaring, if I understand 
the language, that if I do not thus preach and pray you are determined, 
in violation of your vows and duty, to abstain from the ordinances of God's 
house as administered in the Church to which you belong and of which 
some of you are office-bearers. Now, I appeal to your better judgment if 
this can be justified ? Is it not manifestly schismatical ? It seems to me 
that you are doing in the Church of God what you so thoroughly condemn 
when done in the State. 

Is schism less a sin than secession ? And what if, in imitation of your 
example, I should get a paper telling me that " at a meeting of the members 
of Pine Street Church who are in favor of sustaining the government of 
the" (Presbyterian Church) 4 'in its efforts to put down" (the schism) "raised 
against it," (resolutions were passed demanding that) "a cordial obedience 
to the lawfully constituted authority of the" (Church) "and opposition to 
schism should be taught from its pulpit and by the private influence and 
example of its pastor." I call your attention to this not because it is likely 
to occur, nor because if it did occur that I would be likely to give any other 
attention to the demand than I expect to give yours, but I ask you to look at 
it to see where the principle you adopt and the course you have pursued 
logically lead. I do sincerely hope that you will reconsider this whole 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



matter and take a different view of your duty. But upon whatever course 
you may determine, and whatever results may follow it, I feel conscious 
that, in these times of violence and faction, I have aimed to conduct myself 
circumspectly as a minister of Christ — that I have studied and sought after 
the things that make for peace — that I have tried to avoid all occasion of 
irritation ; and so true is this that those who complain of my course complain 
not of what I have done, but of what I have not done. I know there are 
sins of omission as well as of commission, and if I am guilty of the former I 
am truly sorry; but this I can say, I followed my best judgment in view of 
my responsibility to God. This I say with regard to those subjects more 
or less connected with the troubles of the State, which might be legitimately 
presented from the pulpit. As to my launching out in the pulpit upon 
politics, State or national, expounding or defending the Constitution of the 
United States, advocating or opposing the measures of the administration, 
I have no more idea of doing so than I have of doing anything that would 
bring conscious self-degradation. 

I regard the whole generation of ministers who do these things in the 
pulpit as a disgrace to the Church and an intolerable nuisance to the State, 
and that they are anywhere tolerated is to my mind evidence of such a state 
of corruption as goes far to explain the fearful judgments that God has sent 
upon the land. I expect, therefore, in time to come as in time past, to 
preach the great distinctive doctrines of the Gospel; nor do I see any good 
reasons why I should change the petitions which I am in the habit of offer- 
ing in the sanctuary. I belive them to be scriptural, and such as all good 
men should be able heartily to unite in offering to God. I pray for all 
our civil rulers. This Paul enjoins. I ask God to give them the wisdom 
their station demands ; to let His blessing rest upon them ; to incline them 
to do that which is right, and to restrain them from doing anything that 
would be hurtful or wrong. In reference to our national troubles, I confess 
our national and individual sins as the cause; acknowledge the justice of 
God in afflicting us ; implore His pardon for the past and His mercy for the 
future; and without prescribing to Him the method or the means, I beseech 
Him, in the name of Christ, so to order and control all these events that they 
shall result in His glory, the advancement of His kingdom and the good of 
the whole country. 

And I have selected petitions like these, not as adapted to this or that 
locality, but what, as in my conscience before God, I believe to be becoming 
and proper in the Church of God, which, in my conception of it, is in its 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 139 

very nature spiritual, beneficent and catholic ; belonging to no party, section 
or nation; having no head or law-giver but Christ, and having no work to 
do and no kingdom to uphold but His. I know that there are ministers 
who go much further in all these things than I do, and I know that among 
them are many eminent for wisdom and piety. I do not judge such. I 
honor and love them. Still, as every man is to give an account of himself 
to Christ, I must do what, after earnest and prayerful meditation, I believe 
Christ will approve. If I have adopted this course for fear of man, or to 
please men, or from any unworthy or sinful motive, I have reason to fear 
his displeasure; but if I have adopted it from a conscientious conviction 
that it is right — from a desire to please him, even if I am mistaken, I shall 
still humbly hope in his pardon. 

But I close this communication, already too long. In my former reply I 
told you that without my consent I did not wish it to be published. My 
reasons for this were, first, I hoped the whole thing would be settled among 
ourselves without going to the public. Second, I feared that its publication 
in the present excited state of the public mind might be seized upon 
by anonymous writers, who, under cover of patriotism and loyalty, might 
seek to vent their personal or sectarian spleen against the church ; and, third, 
out of regard for yourselves, for I considered your communication, in its 
whole tenor and spirit, as so foreign from what is customary between a 
pastor and his people, and so evidently tinged by the violent and denuncia- 
tory character of these unhappy times, that I believed that you yourselves 
would, in time to come, regret its publication. But since you have seen 
proper to say, in one of your resolutions, that the publication of my paper 
would only confirm the opinion of my disloyalty, I now give my full consent 
to its publication, on the conditions, first, that the whole communications 
that have passed between us be published; second, that those who signed 
the paper of June last, and do not wish to have their names connected with 
it, be allowed to withdraw them without remark; third, that I am to see 
and have an opportunity of replying to anything you may choose to say on 
this paper ; that I shall be consulted as to the place and manner of publica- 
tion ; and I ask you to appoint a committee to confer with me as to the time 
and manner of its publication. 

The note that follows explains itself : 

Dear Pastor: We, the undersigned, desire to express to you that 
having signed the communication addressed to you, subscribed by a portion 



140 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



of the members ot your church and congregation, dated the 18th of June 
last, and having heard your response, written and read by you, at a meeting 
held subsequently, at your request, in the lecture room of the church, at 
which nearly all of said subscribers were present, and at the close of which 
meeting we understood your response to be quite satisfactory. We have 
since then learned, with much regret, that some of those subscribers are 
yet discontented. We desire to state that we do not wish to be considered 
as having any connection with the movement now understood to be made in 
the church looking to a dissolution of the pastoral relation. 

M. SIMPSON, 
W. W. GREENE, 
LESLEY GARNETT, 
ROBERT DOUGHERTY, 
JAMES DOUGHERTY, 
JAMES LOVE. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



141 



CHAPTER VIII. 

REPLY TO AN ATTACK IN THE MISSOURI DEMOCRAT ORDER OF 

BANISHMENT ACTION OF PINE STREET SESSION. 

In addition to the foregoing, "a letter appeared in the Mis- 
souri Democrat, of December 13, 1862, written by George P. 
Strong, and signed by himself, J. M. Corbett and John M. 
Ferguson, as a committee." Dr. McPheeters regarded this 
letter " as a most shameless and false assault upon his charac- 
ter," and he, therefore, proceeds to vindicate his good name in 
the statement that follows, dated December 22, 1862 : 

I feel that it is due to myself and the Church of which I am the pastor 
that I should briefly notice a letter which appeared in the Democrat, Decem- 
ber 13, written by George P. Strong, and signed by himself, J. M. Corbett 
and John M. Ferguson, as a committee. 

This letter is the continuation of a correspondence, a part of which I had 
already, in pamphlet form, "printed for the information of the members 
of Pine Street Church." I wish now to say that I can not consent to have 
any further correspondence with this committee, and especially with its 
organ, the chairman ; nor can I enter into the kind of newspaper contest 
which this letter courts. It is as foreign from my taste as it would be un- 
becoming my calling to " render railing for railing.' ' 

There is a self-respect which no one is at liberty to disregard. And when 
any one allows himself, as the author of this letter has, distinctly to make 
or plainly to insinuate such charges as I here find — charges the scope and 
plain meaning of which are that, in the general, I use my office as a minis- 
ter of the Gospel to accomplish wicked and seditious purposes, and in the 
particular, that I am an encourager of treason ; that, as a pastor, I am 
using my influence to pervert the young of my charge, and to encourage all 
under my influence in a wicked opposition to the Government under which 
I live ; that I withhold, and that from unworthy motives, the truths of God's 
Word from those to whom I minister; that having taken "an oath of alle- 



142 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



giance under a sort of compulsion," that I have not kept it in its " broad and 
comprehensive sense," but only so far as to enable me to escape the civil 
or military penalty of its violation; and that, inventing or adopting " an ab- 
surd and ridiculous distinction," I justify myself in taking an oath as a man 
and violating it as a minister. Now I say, when any one makes or insinu- 
ates such charges, and at the same time shows that no age however imma- 
ture, no sex however feeble, no relation however near, no tie however 
sacred, is to be exempt from wanton and unmanly assault, self-respect 
requires me to close a correspondence so conducted ; and not only self- 
respect, but Christian duty, for it is perfectly manifest that a correspondence 
between a pastor and an elder in his Church, conducted in the spirit of this 
letter, can only end in bringing scandal upon religion and reproach upon 
the Church of Christ. 

If I have done or am doing what in this letter is alleged or insinuated; if 
the charges made are true — if they are believed to be true by those who 
made them — they are bound in duty and conscience to make and establish 
them before the ecclesiastical court to which I am amenable, that the honor 
of religion may be vindicated. This I call upon them to do, and if it is not 
done, if it is not attempted, then let fair minded men judge between me and 
my assailants ; and I have lived to little purpose if, after a ministry of more 
than half a score of years in this city, good and honorable men believe of 
me what this letter charges and upon such evidence as it adduces. 

I have neither the disposition nor the intention to go through the four 
columns of this communication and correct the misstatements and misrep- 
resentations which every where abound. This would take far more time 
and space than I propose to occupy; an insinuation or a false representation 
may be made in a line which it will take a page to correct. I shall give but 
one example by way of illustrating the kind of dealing in which this letter 
abounds, and I select the one that I do, not because it is worse than others, 
nor because it can be more easily exposed, but because it relates to a matter 
that has had some prominence in this correspondence and has attracted 
some attention in the community. I allude to the baptism. The letter 
says, " Your memory seems equally at fault in reference to the rebel baptism, 
or rather the language you use is calculated to create an erroneous impres- 
sion. You say the parents never informed you what name the child was to 
bear 'until, in the very act of administering the sacrament, you asked them.' 
But other persons did inform you, several weeks before the baptism, that 
it was to be baptized Sterling Price." Now, any one reading this sentence 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



*43 



would, I think, infer that I had disingenuously concealed the fact that the 
child's name had ever been mentioned to me; that in some way they had 
come to the knowledge that I knew it before, and that they felt bound to 
expose the duplicity of my course. 

But what will impartial men trlink when they are informed that what they 
know of this matter is just what they learned from my own lips ; that in a 
public meeting where I met those who are represented by this committee 
— two of the committee being present — I read the paper in which I say, as 
quoted above, " neither of the parents informed me," &c; and after 
reading it I remarked to these very gentlemen, that while what I here said 
was the simple truth, that I thought it proper to say to them that I had 
been told that the child was to be called Sterling Price, but in a connection 
and under circumstances that made me believe it was a jest; that I had 
dismissed it from my mind, and the name took me as much by suprise as it 
did the congregation. Now, I submit it to the candor of all men, if those 
who have no " personal unfriendliness " tome, "some of whom have been 
my warm and devoted personal friends," should take a fact which I volun- 
teered to give them and make it impeach the very candor that led me to 
mention it. 

It is with real sadness that I have to add that this is not an unfair example 
of the spirit of this letter. And when the opportunity is offered before an 
ecclesiastical court (where it can be done with the least scandalj, I pledge 
myself to make this declaration good concerning the body of the statements 
and the spirit that animates the whole letter. 

To those who are represented by this committee I wish to say that I do 
not hold them responsible for the manner and matter of this communication. 
I believe that many of them will not approve it. 

It is due to the public, and such of my friends as have not already been 
informed, to say that a small pamphlet, which I had printed for the use of 
my congregation, contains the correspondence, and the reasons for and 
circumstances under which it was printed, and will correctly inform those 
who wish correct information on this whole matter. This pamphlet can be 
procured from me or any of the members of Pine Street Church. For the 
information of such as may not take the trouble to procure or read one of 
these pamphlets I will give a brief statement of the point at issue between 
myself and these gentlemen. 

Some of the members of my church claim that, in virtue of the relation 
in which I stand to them as pastor, they have a right to demand, and 



144 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



they have demanded, my written opinion and personal position upon the 
civil and political questions which now agitate the nation. 

This claim of right I deny, and have felt bound in duty and conscience to 
treat it as a matter of pri7iciple. "What they claim as a right has no exist- 
ence. Nothing in the standard of our church, nothing in the relation of a 
pastor to his people, involves or implies the existence of such a right. 
There is not an ecclesiastical tribunal known to my church that would pre- 
tend to claim for itself such a right. The whole circumstances connected 
with the getting up of the paper — its formal manner, formal presentation — 
all led me understand that the movers in the matter were asserting what 
they regarded as a right. There are times when a wise man, for the sake 
of peace, may yield even his rights, or at least waive them. But everything 
around me warned me that this was no time to yield to such a claim. Po- 
litical questions are the all-absorbing subjects of men's thoughts; the spirit 
of the day is characterized by lawlessness and radicalism ; the community 
in which I live is excited and divided ; all the parties and opinions to be 
found any where are to be found here. Under such circumstances I could 
not but see that weakly to yield the claim to such a right was to cut loose 
from sure moorings and put to sea in a raging storm. It was plain to see 
that the principle once acknowledged and the practice once inaugurated, I 
could not stop. If a pastor gives his written opinion on the object and end 
of the war, why not on the President's proclamation ? Why not any civil 
question ? 

If Emancipationists may interrogate their pastor, Democrats may do the 
same. Any man, of any opinion, may claim the same right. It requires no 
great penetration to see that the dictatorial spirit which begins such a course 
becomes but more exacting the more it is gratified. Resistance at the be- 
ginning, and resistance on some well defined principle, is clearly the only 
resistance that can hope to be effectual. 

Again, I resisted the demand because I regarded it as a duty which I 
owed to all the ministers of the gospel who are not willing to become poli- 
ticians. Example is contagious. Restless, radical, fanatical men unhap- 
pily abound. There is a sympathy that binds them together like a common 
instinct. They move in concert. Agitation is their main weapon ; where 
they begin they do not stop. Let any one look at this letter. It will be 
seen that these gentlemen feel that they have a mission ; they feel called 
upon, in the ' ' conscientious discharge of their duty to God and the gov- 
ernment under which they live," not only to regulate their own pastor and 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



H5 



church, but other pastors and churches in this city ; nay, more, through the 
Presbytery and Synod (composed of ministers and representatives of the 
churches), the pastors and churches of half the State. Did not the peace of 
the church require me firmly and at all hazards to resist the demands of such 
men? Again, I resisted because the teachings and practice of my whole 
ministerial life solemnly pledged me to resist. In all places and at all times 
I have opposed, to the full extent of my ability, the introduction ot civil, 
secular and political questions into the house of God. As a pastor, and 
because I am a pastor, I have stood aloof from these things, even in my 
private relations. In the church courts, from the highest to the lowest, 
when the current was with me and when it was against me, I have resisted 
with all the influence and ability that I had the introduction and decision of 
such questions. I have nothing to conceal on this subject, and nothing to 
retract. I thank God for what he has enabled me to do, and only regret 
that I was not able to do more. The Constitution of the Presbyterian 
Church, which every minister in his ordination vows declares that he 
" sincerely receives and adopts as containing the system of doctrines taught 
in the Holy Scriptures," says: " Synods or councils are to handle or con- 
clude nothing but what is ecclesiastical, and are not to intermeddle with 
civil affairs which concern the Commonwealth." The chuch is bound by 
her fundamental laws to exclude these matters from her courts." 

As a minister of the Gospel I have only to say that the point from which 
I regard and deal with men has never been as citizens of the commonwealth, 
having civil duties to perform, but as " fallen sinners, having need of salva- 
tion ; " and the great thing at which I have aimed, and to which I have 
subordinated everything else, is to bring them to the cross, to reconcile 
them to God through the blood of the Lamb, and to imbue them with the 
spirit of the Divine Master. In saying this I neither forget nor ignore the 
fact that I am the authorized expounder of revelation which touches the 
entire circle of human duty. But I hold this to be true, that when men 
have an intellectual acquaintance with their civil or social duties, and fail or 
refuse to do them, that the speediest, the most effectual way to bring them 
to their performance is to press upon their hearts and consciences the great 
doctrines of the cross. The all-comprehending source of sin is alienation 
from God. Bring them back to God and you bring them back to all their 
duties. This is my theory, and has been my practice since I entered the 
ministry. 

I believe, moreover, in the complete and absolute separation of the 
TO 



146 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

Church and the State. As a minister of the Church, I hold that I have 
nothing to do with the affairs of the State. I have no commission to uphold 
the State, much less have I to seek its overthrow. For me to use in any 
way or to any degree my sacred office, or the influence which it gives me, 
to subvert the State, to breed discontents in it, to hinder its legitimate 
action, would, in my esteem, be sacrilege, a high and heaven-daring sin. As 
a citizen, I hold it to be a most important and indispensable part of my duty 
to God to obey law, to submit to the authorities, to pray for them, to render 
them the honor due their several stations, and to promote peace and quiet- 
ness. These things, I solemnly declare, I have habitually aimed to do. 

I had no reason to expect the trial that has come upon me from the con- 
duct of some of the members of my Church. How they reconcile their 
conduct to their own consciences I do not pretend to know. Their whole 
course has been to me a mystery, and a painful one. They bring the 
gravest charges against me for doing just what they themselves have done. 
The writer of the letter published in the De?nocrat was, until a short time 
ago, superintendent of the Sabbath School; to him was committed the 
instruction and guidance of the youth of the Church. He was in the habit 
of opening the school by reading and expounding a passage of Scripture. 
When present at our social meetings he has time and again been asked to 
lead in prayer, yet never in his public teaching, never in social prayer, has 
he ever said a word or offered a petition from which any one could have 
gathered what his sentiments were on the absorbing topics of the day. I 
do not reproach him for. this — I commend him. But why should he re- 
proach me when I have gone much farther in all these things than he ever 
went ? 

But I drop this whole subject. I have been reluctantly dragged before 
the community. I now retire with the full purpose not to appear again in 
this matter. If any choose to misrepresent my position, to impeach my 
motives, to slander my name, I will bear it with what Christian fortitude I 
can command. I am comforted in the fact that four-fifths of my Church — 
I speak advisedly — and that without distinction of party or opinions, with 
all my infirmities, continue to me their confidence and support, and I have 
what is better, the testimony of my own conscience. The excitement of 
the present will not always last. A time of reflection will come. Then those 
ministers of the Gospel who in these wild times have tried to calm excite- 
ment, to soothe asperities, who have kept themselves to the Master's 
work, will not be in dishonor. I can afford to wait, and, if need be, suffer 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



!47 



while I wait. I appeal to the future to vindicate my course ; and if I am 
not spared to see that future on earth, yet I know assuredly that another 
future comes, and I am infinitely more anxious that my course should be 
approved then than now. For this I hope and labor, and am willing, I 
trust, to suffer ; and knowing, too, that when that day comes I shall only 
escape by having much forgiven, it becomes me, and I do now, from my 
heart, desire to forgive others. 

Dr. McPheeters also complains that G. P. Strong " had 
omitted from his published pamphlet the names of those indi- 
viduals who urgently protested against the persecution of the 
pastor." He says, in addition, " I have been informed that a 
paper is being circulated, the object of which is to get members 
of the Church to pledge themselves to ask a dissolution of the 
pastoral relation existing between myself and Pine Street 
Church. This proceeding is extraordinary, unknown to the 
Presbyterian Church, and in manifest violation of its Constitu- 
tion and usages." 

The foregoing complaint of Dr. McPheeters is fully sustained 
by testimony gathered from a source that leaves no margin for 
doubt. A cautious, intelligent and conscientious member of 
Pine Street congregation states : 

During the troubles in Pine Street Church one of the male members of 
the Church who was active in procuring signatures to a paper calling on 
Dr. McPheeters to resign his pastoral charge, was also a member of the 
Public School Board. Among others he called on a young lady, who was 
employed as a teacher in one of the Public Schools, and requested her sig- 
nature to the paper which he presented. She, however, promptly declined 
to do so, for the reason, as she stated, that she admired and loved Dr. 
McPheeters, and did not wish to part with him as her pastor. Whereupon 
he threatened her with peremptory dismissal from her situation in the Pub- 
lic School if she persisted in her refusal to sign the paper. The young lady 
was poor, and entirely dependent on her salary as a teacher, not only for 
her own support, but also for the support of her mother and her family. 
When, therefore, the alternative of signing the odious paper or losing her 



148 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



situation, and thereby bringing penury on herself and on the large family 
dependent on her, was presented by one who had the power to carry his 
threat into execution, she reluctantly affixed her signature to it. But no 
sooner did she do this than she at once sought Dr. McPheeters at his res- 
idence, frankly told him what she had done, and stated to him the circum- 
stances under which she had acted. At the same time assuring him of her 
ardent and unchanged affection, she burst into tears, and asked for and 
obtained her letter of dismission from the Church in which she could no 
longer consent to remain. 

What amount of personal ill-feeling on the part of " the 
committee" lay at the bottom of this correspondence it is 
altogether needless to conjecture. Dr. McPheeters said in his 
speech before the Assembly : " Mr. Strong, just before his letter 
came to me, twice asked me to go to the Provisional Governor 
of Missouri and make favorable mention of him as a suitable 
person to be appointed a judge of the Supreme Court of the 
State; and while, for reasons which I gave him, I never did as 
requested, yet it seemed to me very strange that he should 
make such a request if he thought me so notoriously a bad 
citizen as to injure my character as a Christian minister." 

The next development in this remarkable drama was the 
order issued by the military for the banishment of Dr. McPhee- 
ters and his wife from the State of Missouri. That order reads 
as follows : 

Office Provost-Marshal Gen'l, Dep't of the Missouri, > 
St. Louis, Mo., December 19, 1862. $ 

[Special Order No. 152.] 

WHEREAS, On account of unmistakable evidence of sympathy with the 
rebellion on the part of Rev. Samuel B. McPheeters, pastor of the Pine 
Street Church, certain loyal members of his congregation, about six months 
since, urged him to avow his sentiments openly, and to take a stand in 
favor of the Government, which he has refused to do, and has also published 
and circulated two letters within the last two weeks in which he not only 
refuses to declare whether he is in favor of the success of the authorities of 
the nation in their efforts to put down a cruel and desolating rebellion, and 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



149 



has failed to remove a wide-spread and increasing impression that he desires 
the success of the rebel cause ; and, whereas, the said McPheeters, acting 
with others of the same denomination, has used all the influence of his 
ministerial character to prevent the body of the Church with which he is 
connected from declaring or manifesting its loyalty to the Government, and 
has refused to observe, in their obvious meaning and intent, the recom- 
mendations of the President of the United States to the various churches, 
and has allowed the influence of his wife, his brothers and intimate associ- 
ates to seduce him from an open and manly support of the Government 
into active sympathy with the rebellion, whereby the influence of his minis- 
terial position has greatly encouraged the enemies of the Government in 
their wicked schemes for its overthrow, and is still exerting an injurious in- 
fluence, especially upon the youth and other members of his congregation, 
leading them to believe that he sympathizes with the rebels and justifies 
their cause, and to adopt sentiments of hostility to the Government and to 
become active rebels ; and, whereas, in all his course of unfriendliness to 
the Government, and sympathy with, and favor to, rebels, the said Mc- 
Pheeters has been stimulated and encouraged, if not led on, by his wife, 
who openly avows herself a rebel ; whereby the said McPheeters and his 
wife have forfeited the right to the protection and favor of the Government 
in their present position, and have become promoters of rebellion and civil 
discord. Therefore, it is ordered that the said McPheeters and his wife 
leave the State of Missouri, within ten days after the service of this order, 
and that they take up their residence within the Free States, north of Indian- 
apolis and west of Pennsylvania, and remain there during the war, and that 
said McPheeters cease from this date to exercise the functions of his office 
within the State f>f Missouri, and that he deliver to the Clerk of Pine Street 
Church all books, records and papers belonging to the Church. 

It is further ordered that the church edifice, books and papers, at the 
corner of Eleventh and Pine streets, be placed under the control of three 
loyal members of Pine Street Church, namely : George P. Strong, James 
M. Corbett and John M. Ferguson, who shall see that its pulpit be filled 
by a loyal minister of the Gospel, who can invoke the blessing of the Head 
of the Church upon the efforts of the Government to re-establish its 
authority. 

By command of Major-General Curtis. 

F. A. DICK, 

Provost-Marshal General DepH of Missouri. 



150 MEMOIR OF S. B. M J PHEETERS, D. D. 

The New York Express, after reciting the order of banish- 
ment against Dr. McPheeters, remarks : 

Such an order, unaccompanied by a single proof of any one of its alle- 
gations, naturally excites the indignation of loyal people. The Journal 
speaks of it in terms of "astonishment and abhorrence." There is no 
charge that this banished minister has taught treason, or that he has com- 
mitted any crime known to the law. There is no evidence that he is a rebel, 
or in sympathy with the rebellion. All that he has done is, as a Presbyterian 
minister, in the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, he has used 
the influence of his ministerial character to prevent that body from taking 
political action, and also, as a servant of Christ, refused to take any part 
whatever in the contest which divides the Church, his city and his country. 

Even the accusations against him come from a very small minority of 
Abolitionists in the Church. The large majority concur with their pastor, 
who claim, as does the minister himself, that he has thought it wise to use 
the Sabbath not to preach war and politics, but the gospel of Christ. The 
banishment of such a man is a dishonor to the Provost-Marshal and to the 
government which he misrepresents. If the Provost-Marshal acted upon 
the order of Gen. Curtis , the dishonor falls upon him. Mr. Lincoln and 
his wife each attend a Presbyterian Church in Washington, not unlike the 
one in St. Louis, and their pastor is just as amenable to arrest as this min- 
ister in St. Louis, for there the gospel,- and not war or politics, as we have 
been told, is preached. Let Mr. Lincoln, as President of the United States, 
think of such an outrage committed on the person of Rev. Dr. Gurley in 
Washington. What is here done is to declare that the Presbyterian Church 
is amenable to military law, and the advocating in its Sessions of the doc- 
trine that the Church owes allegiance to God, and not to any earthly power, 
is made the cause of military punishment ! A clergyman in the sanctuary 
of the Church is threatened with military punishment if he dare uphold the 
doctrine that his Church owes only the allegiance which Paul and John, and 
the dead saints and martyrs of all countries and ages, members of one and 
the same Church, owe. 

The jfonrnal of Commerce, referring to the charge, in the 
military order of banishment, that Dr. McPheeters neglected 
" the recommendation of the President to the various Churches" 
to perform certain prayers, remarks : 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



Is it America ? Is this the nineteenth century ? Do men imagine that 
God is to be worshiped in compulsory forms in this country ? If Mr. Lin- 
coln approves this act, he would do well at once to import a quantity of 
Chinese praying machines, put his proclamation in them, and set them at 
work with Provost-Marshals, to grind out prayers for the nation. 

The Leader, a British Canadian journal, in the course of a 
review of the several charges against Dr. McPheeters in the 
military order, remarks : 

This remarkable theologico-military indictment and adjudication is 
manifestly framed with a view to dodge the responsibility of making false 
charges, and at the same time to create the impression that a charge of some 
crime against the State deserving of banishment is really hidden under 
this mass of verbiage. A very simple analysis, however, into formal and 
tangible specifications makes it manifest that Dr. M'Pheeters' whole crime 
consists in having, with fidelity to his principles as a minister of Christ, 
whose " kingdom is not of this world," and fidelity to his principles as an 
American citizen, refused, as his Master did under similar circumstances, to 
prostitute his official position to the purposes of partisan zeal. 

Now, observe, it is not even charged that Dr. M'Pheeters ever avowed 
himself against the government, much less committed any act of hostility 
against the government. This would have been too notoriously a false- 
hood. Dr. McPheeters never was, as we are informed, even in opinion, a 
secessionist, properly so-called ; but, so far as he expressed any opinions 
privately, as a citizen, concurred mainly with the great Democratic party in 
the North, and was, therefore, as justly liable to banishment on that score 
as any one of the millions of Democrats — no more, no less. It is certainly 
high time that these Democrats, who have freed themselves from the yoke 
in the North, should be looking after their brethren in the Border States, 
also, who are thus suffering martyrdom for the same faith. 

In regard to the second specification, that Dr. McPheeters used "his 
influence to prevent the body of the Church with which he is connected 
from declaring or manifesting its loyalty — that is, that he made a speech in 
his Presbyterian General Assembly against a political judgment by that 
body — a Briton who has heard the patronizing sympathy of Americans for 
his sad condition under a Church and State government may hardly sup- 
press a smile. How oddly would the proposition strike a Scotchman or an 
Englishman, that a minister should be banished for the crime of having 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



made a speech in General Assembly of the Kirk or in Convocation against 
an ecclesiastical deliverance. 

But the most remarkable point made by Mr. Lincoln's military court as 
"a ground of banishment" is yet to be noticed. Dr. McPheeters has been 
stimulated and encouraged by his tuife, who openly avows herself a 6 ' rebel !" 
This is, we confess, to us, a novel ground for the banishment of a man — 
his wife is a rebel ! We have heard before, but only as an illustration of the 
ignorance of Virginia justices in the old times of the whipping-post — of a 
magistrate who sentenced a citizen to twenty lashes because his wife stole 
wool, from a misapplication of the principle of the husband's responsibility 
for the acts of his wife. But never till now have we supposed that this 
novel application of the doctrine of the husband's responsibility was cur- 
rent in American military courts ! 

In perfect consistency with all that precedes, and with the suggestion 
of the Journal of Commerce, Dr. M'Pheeters' church, records of Church 
Sessions and all, are ordered into the possession of "three loyal members," 
with instructions, in effect, to turn the establishment into a praying machine 
for "invoking the blessing of the Head of the Church on the efforts of the 
government," &c. Of course, consistency demands next the issue of an 
" Order No. 3," supplementary to this, requiring every man and his wife and 
child to visit the praying machine, every Sunday at least, under pain of ban- 
ishment ; for, in the new theory of religion, of what use are the prayers if 
no audience is present to be made loyal, or preserved in their loyalty, by 
them ? 

The Session of Pine Street Church held a regular meeting on 
the 20th of December, 1862. Present: Elders Jno. Whitehill, 
Wm. T. Wood, Alex. Marshall, David K. Ferguson and Win. 
W. Greene. A note was received from the pastor, in which he 
says, " A military order, which you have, no doubt, seen, is the 
cause of my not being with you this evening. I enclose a 
copy of said order." On the reading of w T hich communication 
and order it was unanimously resolved — 

I. By the Standards and Constitution of the Presbyterian Church, the 
government and discipline of the Church is in the Session of the Church, 
composed of the Pastor and Elders, chosen and elected by the people ; and 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 1 53 

the Session only has, or can have, the rightful custody and control of the 
church edifice and books and papers of the Church. 

2. The Constitution of the Church provides for the selection of pastors 
and ministers, and only in the modes provided can a pastor or minister be 
appointed or elected for any church or congregation. All power and control 
in the selection of pastors and ministers is, by our Constitution, denied to 
the civil or other government, or other human power outside of the Church. 

3. As members of this Session, we are under solemn vows to obey and 
maintain the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church ; and whilst we yield 
obedience to said military order, and surrender, so far as we have posses- 
sion and custody, our church edifice, books and papers to the control of the 
individuals indicated — to-wit: George P. Strong, James M. Corbitt and 
John M. Ferguson, a sense of duty constrains us to record our convictions 
that the necessary effect of the order is to suspend, while the order is in 
force, organized church action. 

4. We earnestly urge and entreat all the members of the Church not to 
suffer this sore affliction to scatter our little flock, but to maintain steadfastly 
their present relations with Pine Street Church, and, in faith and trust and 
Christian patience, await the return of the day when, in God's providence, 
the possession and control of our church edifice, and the government and 
discipline of the Church, shall be restored to us, to be used and exercised 
in accordance with the Constitution and Standards of the Presbyterian 
Church. 

5. We know not on what evidence the military authorities acted, as their 
order affects our pastor, the Rev. Samuel B. McPheeters, and intend no 
impeachment of their action ; but, adhering to our pastor as we do, and as 
our solemn vows require of us, a sense of duty impels us to bear our testi- 
mony to his rare talents and efficiency as a minister and to his faithfulness 
as a pastor. We have been on terms of most familiar intercourse with him. 
We believe more than four-fifths of the church and congregation would 
unite with us in this utterance. We commend him to the sympathy and 
affection of God's people, wherever he may go or sojourn in his involuntary 
wanderings from the people of his charge, whom he so much loves. 

6. We have no purpose in these resolutions to criticise the order of the 
military referred to ; our only aim has been to declare our views of our 
powers and duty as a Church Session in the circumstances that surround us. 

On December 28th, 1862, the following paper was placed in 



154 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

Dr. McPheeters' hands : " The order made against you, on the 
19th December, is modified, until further orders, to this extent: 
that you are not required to leave the State." 

The Session met once more, on March 10th, 1863. Military 
order, No. 25, dated 4th March, 1863, was read. That order 
is as follows : 

Special Order, 152, Par. II, of date of 19th December, 1862, relating to 
the Pine Street Presbyterian Church, is hereby further modified, as follows : 
It appearing that Messrs Strong, Corbitt and Ferguson Lave not taken 
charge of the church edifice, books and papers, so much of said order as 
directed them to do so is now rescinded. 

By order of Maj.-Gen'l S. R. Curtis. 

F. A. DICK, 
Lieut. -Col. and Provost-Marshal-General. 

At this meeting, a letter, written by George P. Strong, James 
M. Corbitt and J. M. Ferguson, was read to the Session. 
Whereupon it was 

Resolved, That the aforesaid military order, and the letter of George P. 
Strong and others, and all other matters and things relating to the condition 
of the Church, be referred to a committee of three to consider and report 
upon to Session at its next meeting. 

The Moderator appointed on said committee Elders Wood, 
Marshall and Greene. 

The Session met again on March 12th, 1863. The report 
of the committee appointed at last meeting was called for and 
read. It recites in part that 

From the 20th December, the day Session acted on the subject, up to 
about the last of February thereafter, the church edifice was regarderd as 
under the control of the Military Committee by the Sexton, the Session, and 
a large majority of the congregation, and, indeed, by all persons as far as 
known to members of Session. 

The order from Mr. Strong, on the 20th of December, to lock up the 
church, was without consultation with the Session or any member of it. 
Some days after this a room in the basement, known as the Pastor's Study, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 1 55 

and used for Sunday School purposes, was placed in the possession of some 
ladies for sewing purposes ; and from about or near the same time ministers 
were provided for the pulpit every Sabbath, and Wednesday evening prayer 
meetings were kept up in the basement. A choir was also provided, to 
whom the regular church choir felt that they were constrained to give 
place. All this was without authority from the Session, and without con- 
sultation with them. And all this the Session supposed was done by order 
of the Military Committee, until on Saturday, about the last of February, 
when Mr. Strong informed one of the members of the Session that he, as 
well as the other two named on the Military Committee, had, with the con- 
sent of Gen. Curtis and Col. Dick, declined to act as a Military Committee, 
and had not so acted, and that all that had been done in and with the 
Church had been done by them, of their own choice, as members of the 
Church, claiming a right so to act as such. This w T as on Saturday. On 
the next day, Sunday, without authority from the Session, the Rev. 
Mr. McCune, then occupying the pulpit, also without such authority, 
announced a meeting of the Church and congregation for Wednesday even- 
ing then next following, the fourth day of March. 

It now appears from Military Order No. 25, as well as from the letter of 
Mr. Strong and others, that the gentlemen named in the first Order as a 
Committee declined to act as such. It, therefore, becomes a question — a 
grave question — how far our Constitution and Standards will furnish author- 
ity for the acts, such as have been specified, of members of a Church, 
merely as such, and in a small minority? 

At a meeting of Pine Street Session, on March 19, Elder 
Strong gave notice of protest against the adoption of the report 
of the committee and the resolutions at the last meeting of 
Session, and asked further time to prepare such protest, which 
was granted without objection. 

When Session met, pursuant to adjournment, on March 28, 
Elder Strong offered and read his protest against the action of 
the Session of March 12, and asked that the same be recorded 
in the Minutes of the Session. He also presented a petition, 
signed by fifty-two members of the Church and congregation, 
asking that a meeting of the Church and congregation be 
called by the Session as early as notice can be given. 



156 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

Thursday, April 2, 1863. Session met pursuant to adjourn- 
ment. The protest of Elder George P. Strong was recorded 
and Messrs. Wood, Marshall and Greene -appointed a com- 
mittee to answer the same. 

On April 8th the Session met to hear the report of the 
committee and to appoint a delegate to represent this church 
in St. Louis Presbytery, to meet at Warrenton, Mo., on Friday, 
10th instant. Elder Greene was elected principal and Elder 
Whitehall alternate. 

Pursuant to adjournment, the Session of Pine Street Church 
met once again, on April 9th, 1863, at five o'clock. Elder 
Wood offered a letter, prepared for presentation to Presbytery, 
asking decision and instruction on the following points : 

1. That meetings of the Church and congregation, to decide matters 
affecting the interests of the Church and binding on the Church, can only 
be regularly called by the Session or some higher judicatory. 

2. That the Session should call the Church and congregation together 
whenever, in their judgment, the interests of the Church would be promoted 
by so doing. 

3. That it is the duty of the Session to convene the Church and congre- 
gation when a majority of the persons entitled to vote in the matter 
coming before such a meeting shall, by a petition, request that a meeting 
be called. [Form of Government, Chap. XV., Sec. I.] 

We respectfully ask your reverend body to tell us if we are correct in 
this exposition of the Constitution, as given above, and to make such further 
deliverance in the matter as in your judgment is proper, and to give us 
notice in time to prevent the evil feared from the meeting called for Wed- 
nesday evening next. By regarding our petition we believe you will pro- 
mote peace and unity in our Church ; and may the blessing and guidance of 
the Head of the Church rest upon you and us. 

Resolutions adopted unanimously by the Presbytery of St. 
Louis, in session at Warrenton, Mo., April 10th, 1863, in an- 
swer to Memorial of the Session of Pine Street Presbyterian 
Church, dated 8th April, 1863 : 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 1 57 

1. That -meetings of the Church and congregation to decide matters affect- 
ing the spiritual interests of the Church can only be regularly called by 
the Session or some higher judicatory. 

2. That the Session should call the Church and congregation together 
whenever, in their judgment, the spiritual interests of the Church would be 
promoted by so doing. 

3. That it is the duty of the Session to convene the Church and congre- 
gation when a majority of the persons entitled to vote on the matter coming 
before such a meeting shall, by a petition, request that a meeting be called. 
[Form of Government, Chap. XV., Sec. I.] 

It must be remembered that the military authorities had not, 
as yet, ventured upon those extreme measures toward all " sus- 
pected" ministers of the Gospel which were afterward adopted. 
Hence the Presbytery which met at Warrenton was composed 
not simply of members who held to the Erastian theory, but 
of others beside, who earnestly contended for the crown rights 
of Jesus Christ. Consequently, in answer to the petition 
(which contained the issues between the minority and a ma- 
jority of Pine Street Session), Presbytery vindicated the doctrine 
of the Church's Standards. But, notwithstanding this decision, 
George P. Strong, at the call of a minority of the congregation, 
proceeded to hold a congregational meeting, and otherwise 
effected his purposes. 

During this whole period Dr. McPheeters was anxious to 
meet his accusers face to face. But the privilege was peremp- 
torily denied. " A military court pronounced an ecclesiastical 
sentence, and having virtually deposed the pastor, proceeds to 
order his banishment from the State." Great credit is due to 
those members of the Session of Pine Street Church who 
remained true to Constitutional Presbyterianism in the day of 
fiery trial. It was through the instrumentality of these " faith- 
ful ones " that the facts of the case, freed from sophistry, were 
kept distinctly before the minds of the people. And it was 



158 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

during this struggle " that the efforts and schemes of the active 
agents of the persecution to procure control of the church 
edifice, books, &c, as well as the congregation itself, were 
fearfully developed. In these efforts and schemes, assuming 
that the pastor was chained hand and foot by the military, and 
Elders and people in daily apprehension of arrest and trouble, 
they tried many projects and expedients and devices, which, if 
they had not been met with much caution and prudence by 
the members of the Session and people, would have been 
successful." 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



*S9 



CHAPTER IX. 

DR. M'PHEETERS PUTS HIS RESIGNATION INTO THE HANDS OF 
PRESBYTERY WHY? ERASTIAN VIEWS OF NORTHERN AS- 
SEMBLY. 

As early as December 23, 1862, the pastor determined to 
visit Washington City and submit the whole question in per- 
son to the Chief Magistrate of the nation. In connection with 
the preparations for this visit, Mrs. McPheeters, the esteemed 
widow of the deceased, remarks : " I mentioned once or 
twice, in conversation with you, an incident that occurred 
among a number of others during those dark days of trial in 
St. Louis, that impressed my mind as much as any other 
(owing to all the surrounding circumstances) of the intense 
conviction my husband had of the truth and importance of 
those principles for which, in the providence of God, he was 
made to act and suffer a more conspicuous part than his re- 
tiring nature would otherwise have allowed him to do. 

" In the Order of Banishment, he was given ten days to make 
his arrangements to leave the State. After consulting with his 
excellent Session, and a lew wise friends, he determined to go 
to Washington, and appeal in person to Mr. Lincoln. In 
order to get such an interview he must needs have some one 
to introduce him who could get access to the President at once, 
since his time was short. 

" Attorney-General Bates had always been a warm personal 
friend, and, deciding to appeal through him, he went down the 
evening before he was to start, accompanied by his friend, Mr. 
J. B. Alexander, to the house of Gov. Gamble, brother-in-law 



l6o MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

to Mr. Bates, to get the Attorney-General's address. He got 
it and was about to leave when the Governor said, ' Wait, and 
I will give you a letter to Mr. Bates.' He took it and 
thanked the Governor. When he reached home, however, 
he talked over the contents of the letter with Mr. Alexander 
and Mr. D. K. Ferguson, and was greatly troubled ; for in it the 
Governor took the ground (and on this ground simply asked for 
my husband's release) that he knew Dr. McPheeters not only 
to be loyal, but a man of perfect integrity and faithfulness in all 
obligations. My husband argued thus : i Should I go to 
Washington and present this letter I shall obtain my release at 
once, without opening my mouth, but I shall then give up the 
principles for which I have been contending, and the maintain- 
ing of which has been the occasion of my pulpit being taken 
from me. Should I, however, decline to present it when I get 
to Washington, and say nothing about it, then, too, should a 
release be obtained, Gov. Gamble will be under a false im- 
pression. 

" 6 No, I will defer my start for the National Capital till to- 
morrow, though my tickets are secured. I will take the letter 
back in the morning and run the risk of losing the Governor's 
friendship, much as I need all my friends now. I'll thank 
him for his kindness/ Having resolved, he waited, without 
sleeping and in great excitement, until the omnibus came 
at two o'clock a. m. He called the driver and engaged 
a seat for the following day. As early in the morning as prac- 
ticable my husband went to the Governor's office and asked 
to see him. He handed him his kind letter and thanked him 
for it, but told him that it was not for his personal release that: 
he was going to Washington, but that he might appeal to Mr. 
Lincoln against the authority of .the military to control the 
Church, or to dictate to its ministers what they should teach. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. l6l 

from its pulpit. The Governor looked at him in silence for a 
few moments, and then exclaimed, 1 Do you think that you 
will be able to make Lincoln see that ? 1 He replied, 1 1 
don't know, but I am going to Washington to try.' The 
Governor's reply was, ' Go, and God be with you.' He 
went, and the result you know." 

Here, then, was an opportunity for the man, McPheeters, to 
escape from the hardships inseparable from military banish- 
ment. Only allow the contest to become an affair of " private 
interpretation," and let influential friends plead the virtues of 
the persecuted, and in a few days peace and liberty shall be 
restored. But this noble witness for the truth responds, No. 
"I am nothing; the truth and my Master's honor — these are 
everything." Nor were these the words of a fanatic. For, 
says Dr. McPheeters again, " It is true enough that the servants 
of Christ should be willing not only to go into exile, but to the 
stake for His truth. But it is equally true that those who have 
grace enough to be martyrs should have sense enough not to 
court martyrdom upon any but a fair issue. Even a man with 
the spirit of a martyr might wish to know before matters went 
to extremes if those at whose hands he was to suffer were act- 
ing under a totally wrong impression, and if he would have an 
opportunity of explaining his case in his own way, and dying, 
if die he must, for the Lord's truth, and not for some man's 
falsehood. And, beside all that, the call to martyrdom should 
be a call from Christ and not from those of whom there was 
good reason to believe that they were not uttering His voice 
nor the voice of His people." 

In reference to the Order of Banishment an influential Nor- 
thern journal of that date says : 

The case of Dr. McPheeters reveals not only shameless treatment of 
that devoted minister, but also fearful insult of the " Great King," and an 
II 



162 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



ignominious betrayal of the purity of His Bride — the Church. In Mis- 
souri General Rosecrans did not allow any religious bodies, except the 
Romanists, to assemble until they had qualified themselves for transacting 
the business of the Church by obeying his orders — by taking an oath. 
George P. Strong, an Elder, and one Rev. J. Jermain Porter prevailed on 
the Provost-Marshal- General of Missouri to send a military officer to the 
Presbytery of St. Louis for the purpose of preventing any minister or 
Elder from sitting in that court of Jesus Christ unless additionally qualified 
by having taken Rosecrans' oath. And these same men, • Strong and 
Porter, obtained from the Provost the promise that he would arrest any 
member of the Presbytery who should move to lay political resolutions on 
the table. One Colonel Livingston, in command at Batesville, Arkansas, 
drew up and furnished to the ministers in that region a form of prayer 
which he commanded them "to use or they must cease to preach." "It is 
well to remember/ ' says the New York Journal of Co77imerce of that date, 
"that the policy of the administration party has been to compel prayer for 
specific results, and to denounce as traitors all who refuse to pray for bles- 
sings on the peculiar policy of the President. Prayer has been forced at 
the point of the bayonet. The words are literally true. The party in 
power has steadily insisted that the clergy should pray for the success of 
abolition schemes. Clergymen have been subjected to military seizure 
when they declined to pray for blessings on the peculiar 'means in favor 
with the abolitionists.' Soldiers have been detailed to churches to see that 
the prayers were properly worded. The priest has been arrested at the 
altar and taken away to prison for omitting a particular form of prayer. 
The kingdom of heaven is not taken by violence of this sort." 

But did the Northern General Assembly ever adopt Erastian 
views ? Did her deliverances subordinate in any degree the 
Headship of Jesus Christ to the authority of Caesar ? Let the 
appeal be made to history. The Northern Assembly, at its 
Sessions in Philadelphia, in 1861, by a vote of one hundred 
and fifty-four to sixty-six, adopted what is known as "The 
Spring Resolutions." The second resolution reads as follows : 

Resolved, That this General Assembly, in the spirit of that Christian 
patriotism which the Scriptures enjoin, and which has always characterized 
this Church, do hereby acknowledge and declare our obligation to promote 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



163 



and perpetuate, so far as in us lies, the integrity of these United States, 
and to strengthen, uphold and encourage the Federal Government in the 
exercise of all its functions, under our noble Constitution ; and to this Con- 
stitution, in all its provisions, requirements and principles, we profess our 
unabated loyalty. And to avoid all misconception, the Assembly declares 
that by the term Federal Government, as here used, is not meant any par- 
ticular Administration, or the peculiar opinions of any particular party, but 
that Central Administration which, being at any time appointed and inau- 
gurated according to the forms prescribed in the Constitution of the United 
States, is the visible representative of our national existence. 

Thus it will be perceived that a court of the Lord Jesus 
undertakes to settle authoritatively, by a single resolution, a 
great political question, which had divided the minds of eminent 
statesmen, North and South, since the very foundation of the 
Government. Were there any foreshadowings of Erastianism 
here ? Dr. Charles Hodge and fifty-seven others thought so, 
and, accordingly, entered their solemn protest : 

We, the undersigned, respectfully protest against the action of the 
General Assembly . . . because we deny the right of the 
General Assembly to decide the political question, to what Government the 
allegiance of Presbyterians, as citizens, is due, and its right to make that 
decision a condition of membership in our Church. That the paper adopted 
by the Assembly does decide the political question just stated, in our judg- 
ment, is undeniable. It not only asserts the loyalty of this body to the 
Constitution and the Union, but it promises, in the name of all the Churches 
and ministers whom it represents, to do all that in them lies to strengthen, 
uphold and encourage the Federal Government. 

It is, however, a notorious fact, that many of our ministers and mem- 
bers conscientiously believe that the allegiance of the citizens of this country 
is primarily due to the States to which they respectively belong ; and, there- 
fore, that whenever any State renounces its connection with the United 
States, and its allegiance to the Constitution, the citizens of that State are 
bound, by the laws of God, to continue loyal to their State and obedient 
to its laws. The paper adopted by the Assembly virtually declares, on the 
other hand, that the allegiance of citizens is due to the United States, any 
thing in the Constitution, ordinances or laws of the several States to the 



164 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



contrary notwithstanding. . . . . It is the allegiance 

of the Old School Presbyterian Church to the Constitution and the Federal 
Government which this paper is intended to profess and proclaim. It does, 
therefore, of necessity, decide the political question which agitates the 
country. This is a matter clearly beyond the jurisdiction of this House. 

The General Assembly, in thus deciding a poli- 
tical question, and in making that decision practically a condition of mem- 
bership of the Church, has, in our judgment, violated the Constitution of 
the Church and usurped the prerogative of its Divine Master. 

The action of the Assembly of 1862 has already been noticed 
in part. It was in that Assembly that Dr. R. J. Breckinridge 
openly charged Dr. McPheeters with disloyalty, and sent forth 
to the country a paper remarkable, most of all, for its marvelous 
fertility of denunciatory epithet hurled against the " Christian 
people throughout all the revolted States." Messrs. A. H. Du- 
mont and B. R. Allen protest, as follows : 

While assenting to all the principles asserted in this paper, dissent from 
what they solemnly and conscientiously believe , that in this deliverance the 
Assembly has contravened the 31st Article, 4th section, of the Constitution 
of the Presbyterian Church, in its spirit and in its words." 

Dr. Stuart Robinson, Dr. S. B. McPheeters and J. S. Vre- 
denburg protest 

That in this paper — solemnly speaking in the name of Christ and by 
the authority given to the Spiritual Courts — as it seems to us, sundry propo- 
sitions concerning civil matters are handled and concluded, directly or indi- 
rectly, that are forbidden to the ecclesiastical courts, in chapter 31, section 4, 
of the Confession of Faith. We understand this article of the creed to be 
not merely an advice of what is expedient, but a brief summing up of the 

fundamental truths of Presbyterianism Among these 

truths are the propositions that there are two distinct and complete govern- 
ments divinely appointed for man — one, the civil government, from the 
Lord Christ, as the King of nations ; and the other, the ecclesiastical gov- 
ernment, from the Lord Christ, as King of saints. That these two juris- 
dictions, though to some extent over the same subjects, are ordained of 
Christ to be kept distinct That as the power of the sword, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



committed to the civil government, may not be used to do the spiritual work 
of the Church, so, on the other hand, the power of the keys, and the agen- 
cies and ordinances of the Church government may not be prostituted to 

the promotion of merely secular and political purposes On 

these general considerations we protest against certain assumptions, which 
seem to us to be necessarily implied in parts of this paper, of a right in the 
Assembly to handle and conclude certain questions of fact in the civil and 
political history of the country; to pronounce upon the question of the duty 
of the National Government in reference to its civil and military policy ; and 
to declare " loyalty" to be, in common with "orthodoxy and piety," an 
attribute of the Church and its courts. This use of the authority of the 
spiritual government to determine these questions of political history is con- 
trary to Scripture, rendering unto Caesar the things that are God's ; and 
the assumption of authority to pronounce upon the duty of the National 
Government, is equally contrary to the Scripture that enjoins on the Church 
not dictation to, but "subjection to the powers that be." 

Rev. A. P. Forman and four others present an able protest, 
in which, among other things admirably put, they say : 

We deny the right of the Assembly, in the name and by the authority of 
the Lord Christ, to decide any questions or to utter, as truth, any things not 
contained in the Bible. We are limited, as a Church Court, in our authori- 
tative teachings, by the Scriptures. Now, the paper adopted seems to 
assume that the primary allegiance of the citizen belongs to the National 
Government. Whatever we may believe about this as a political dogma, yet 
it is a question which can not be settled by an appeal to the Scriptures, and 
must depend on an interpretation of a human instrument. So the statement 
of certain political facts depends on evidence neither in the Scriptures nor in 
documents in the possession of this Assembly. Furthermore, the counsel of 
this paper, as to the duty of the Government to preserve, at whatever cost, 
the National Union, and to crush force by force, is counsel which we, as a 
Church Court, are not authorized, either by the Bible or by special inspira- 
tion, in the name and by the authority of Christ, to give 

The idea seems to underlie the paper adopted, that the Church owes 
allegiance to the State, for it speaks of "loyal Presbyteries and Synods," 
"loyal Church," etc. The citizen owes allegiance to the State and is bound 
to uphold the civil government ; but the Church, as such, owes allegiance 



i66 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



only to the Lord Jesus ; His kingdom is the only kingdom she is bound to 
uphold, hence she can be loyal only to her own King. 

The Northern Assembly met, in 1863, at Peoria, Illinois. It 
held its sessions beneath the folds of the national banner. This 
judicatory also proceeded to adopt a " deliverance " upon the 
" state of the country." It reads thus : 

It is well known, on the one hand, that the General Assembly has ever 
been reluctant to repeat its testimonies upon important matters of public in- 
terest ; but having given utterance to carefully considered words, is content 
to abide calmly by its recorded deliverances. Nothing that this Assembly 
can say can more fully express the wickedness of the rebellion that has cost 
so much blood and treasure ; can declare in plainer terms the guilt, before 
God and man, of those who have inaugurated or maintained or counten- 
anced, for so little cause, this fratricidal strife; or can more impressively 
urge the solemn duty of the government to the lawful exercise of its au- 
thority ; and of the people, each in his several place, to uphold the civil 
authorities, to the end that law and order may again reign throughout this 
entire nation — than these things have already been done by previous Assem- 
blies. . . , v • j "> ; ♦ . ; &yp . - . s% 

But, on the other hand, it may be well for this General Assembly to re- 
affirm, as it now solemnly does, the great principles to which utterance has 
already been given. We do this the more readily because our beloved 
Church may be thus understood to take her deliberate and well chosen 
stand, free from all imputations of haste or excitement. .... 

And because there are those among us who have scruples touching the 
propriety of any deliverance of a Church court respecting civil matters, this 
Assembly would add, that all strifes of party politics should indeed be ban- 
ished from our Ecclesiastical Assemblies and from our pulpits ; that Chris- 
tian people should earnestly guard against promoting partisan divisions : and 
that the difficulty of accurately deciding, in some cases, what are general 
and what party principles, should make us careful in our judgment; but 
that our duty is none the less imperative to uphold the constituted authori- 
ties, because minor delicate questions may possibly be involved. Rather, 
the sphere of the Church is wider and more searching touching matters of 
great public interest than the sphere of the civil magistrate, in this im- 
portant respect — that the civil authorities can take cognizance only of overt 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



167 



acts, while the law of which the Church of God is the interpreter searches 
the heart and makes every man subject to the civil authority for conscience 

sake, &c. . Officers may not always 

command a citizen's confidence; measures may by him be deemed unwise; 
earnest, lawful efforts may be made for changes he may think desirable ; 
but no causes now exist to vindicate the disloyalty of American citizens 
toward the United States Government. 

The General Assembly would not withhold from the Government of the 
United States that expression of cordial sympathy which a loyal people 
should offer. We believe that God has afforded us ample resources to sup- 
press this rebellion, &c And this Assembly 

is ready to declare our unalterable attachment and adherence to the Union 
established by our fathers, and our unqualified condemnation of the rebel- 
lion ; to proclaim to the world, the United States, one and undivided, as 
our country ; the lawfully chosen rulers of the land, our rulers ; the Gov- 
ernment of the United States, our civil government ; and its honored flag, 
oar flag. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



CHAPTER X. 

STATEMENT OF DOCTRINES AND PRINCIPLES. 

In opposition to Erastian views, Dr. McPheeters held to the 
unity, purity, spirituality and independence of the Church of 
God. He was willing to suffer and, if need be, to die in de- 
fense of the crown rights of Jesus Christ. At the memorable 
discussion between Dr. S. R. Wilson and Dr. R. J. Breckin- 
ridge, on the floor of the Kentucky Synod, Dr. McPheeters 
was present, and he frequently declared that the argument 
of the former was unanswerable — that in the debate he 
gained a signal victory over his opponent. Dr. Wilson also 
asserts that in the conflict of those days he was greatly com- 
forted and encouraged by the counsels and approbation of 
the Rev. Dr. McPheeters. And it will be remembered that 
the statements made by Dr. Wilson in the hearing of that Synod 
had already been embodied in the " Declaration and Testi- 
mony," of which Dr. McPheeters was a signer. 

Still later, a letter from the Synod of Kentucky was for- 
warded to the General Assembly which met in Nashville on 
the 21st of November, 1867. This communication was pre- 
pared by a committee whose business it was to " report a care- 
fully considered statement of the doctrines and principles for 
which this Synod and its Presbyteries have been contending in 
the controversies with the General Assembly North during 
seven years past — particularly the principles maintained by this 
Synod in the interpretation of our standards touching the non- 
political nature and functions ot the Church, the limitations of 
the powers of the General Assembly, and the incompetency of 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



169 



any court of the Church to add to or subtract from the terms 
of ministerial and Christian communion — with a view to lay 
the same before the General Assembly to be holden in Nash- 
ville in November, as the basis of a covenant upon which this 
Synod may form an organic union with that body." 

The manuscript of this letter, paragraph by paragraph, passed 
under the critical inspection of Dr. McPheeters, and he en- 
dorsed most heartily every sentiment which it contains. It will, 
therefore, be well to consider for a moment the statement of 
doctrines and principles for which the Synod of Kentucky and 
its Presbyteries have contended in the controversies with the 
General Assembly, as adopted by the Synod October 11, 1867 : 

II. Still further, to the end that the testimony of this Synod and its Pres- 
byteries may be more clearly understood, and to guard it from the perversions 
and misrepresentations of their adversaries, it is hereby declared, once for 
all, that in their various protests and testimonies against the acts and deliv- 
erances of Assembly just recited, the Synod and its Presbyteries of Kentucky 
have not meant, "as they be slanderously reported," to deny any of the 
following propositions : 

Either, First — To deny that civil government is the ordinance of God, 
and the magistrate God's minister, in the natural order, as are the Church 
officers, in the spiritual order, for the protection of the good and the re- 
pressing of the lawless and wicked. 

Or, Second — To deny that the Church may not properly enjoin obedience 
in the discharge of their duties, as citizens and subjects, to the civil govern- 
ment within its sphere. 

Or, Third — To deny that the State, as 2, natural institute, should acknowl- 
edge " God the King and Ruler," as he makes himself known to the State 
in the natural order, and to man as his creature, ' 1 showing the work of the 
law written in his heart, his conscience also bearing witness, and who may 
clearly see His eternal power and Godhead by the things that are made." 

Or, Fourth — That the State may enforce the law of God as made known 
in the natural order, through the impressions of man's moral nature, and 
the ethical truths clearly deducible from the acknowledged existence of 
God the Creator, and the relations to him of man, the creature, whom "the 



170 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



light of nature showeth that there is a God who hath Lordship and Sover- 
eignty over all." 

Or, Fifth — That the Church should have cognizance of crimes against the 
law of the State, as they may be sins against God, which affect, spiritually, 
the subjects of her spiritual discipline ; the Church having in view to restore 
such a one in the spirit of meekness. 

Or, Sixth — To deny that the Church may properly appeal to the civil 
courts, whose business it is to protect life, liberty and property, for the 
protection, against the lawless and unjust, of property given in trust to her, 
as they protect any other property; or that the Church should protest 
against any intrusion of the civil government into the sphere of the spirit- 
ual, which has been assigned by her Head to her jurisdiction. 

Neither, again, in respect of the interpretation of the Constitution of the 
Presbyterian Church, have this Synod and its Presbyteries intended to 
deny any of the following propositions : 

Either, First — To deny that the power of the Supreme Court, represent- 
ing the power of the whole Church, is, within the limit of Christ's laws, 
over the power of the lower courts representing a part. 

Or, Second — To deny that individual members and lower courts should 
* 4 receive with reverence and submission" the decrees and determinations 
of superior councils, " if consonant to the Word of God" "not only for 
their agreement with the Word, but also for the power whereby they are 
made, as being an ordinance of God appointed thereunto in His Word." 

Or, Third — To deny that the power of the General Assembly, as the 
power of all other courts and office-bearers, is primarily from Jesus Christ, 
the Head of the Church, and only in a secondary sense derived from the 
Constitution ; and that only as it is a delegated body are the Presbyteries 
the fountain of power to the General Assembly. 

Neither, again, in respect of the questions which have given occasion for 
the foregoing acts and utterances of the General Assembly, has this Synod 
and its Presbyteries felt called upon either to affirm or deny any one of the 
following propositions : 

Either, First — That the political acts of the Southern States were right, 
or the contrary. 

Or, Second — That the course of the Federal Government was just, wise 
and magnanimous, or the contrary. 

Or, Third — That the political theory of State Rights is the true theory of 
the Federal Constitution, or the contrary. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



I?! 



Or, Fourth — That the institution of slavery was in accordance with natu- 
ral justice, and in itself desirable, or the contrary. 

III. But, as against certain errors involved in the above recited acts and 
deliverances of the General Assembly — in part, errors of Doctrine concern- 
ing the nature and functions of the Church, as related to Christ, her Law- 
giver and King, on the one hand, and to the civil government, on the other ; 
in part, errors of interpretation of the Constitution of the Presbyterian 
Church in the United States ; in part, acts of usurpation and claims of pre- 
rogatives dangerous to the liberty of the Church and liberty of conscience — 
as against these errors the Synod of Kentucky and its Presbyteries have 
affirmed, and now desire to have solemnly recorded, as part of the accepted 
historical interpretations of the doctrine and order of the Presbyterian 
Church, the following statements, substantially, concerning the doctrine of 
the Church of God and the constitutional principles of the Presbyterian 
Church. 

As against what they deem to be latitudinarian, or at least inadequate 
views of the nature of Church power, which rests directly upon the doctrine 
that Jesus Christ is now actually ruling in His visible Church, and acting 
through His appointed office-bearers, they have maintained : 

I. CONCERNING THE DOCTRINE OF THE KINGSHIP OF CHRIST, AND THE 
MANNER IN WHICH CHRIST EXECUTETH THE OFFICE OF A KING IN HIS 
VISIBLE CHURCH : 

That our standards declare in accordance with the Word of God : 

" Christ executeth the office of a king in calling out of the world a people 
to Himself and giving them officers, laws and censures by which He visibly 
governs them." [Larger Catechism, Q. 45.] 

And that this very clear and explicit statement of the jure divino character 
of all that essentially pertains to the government and discipline of the 
Church is the true key to all the more detailed statements of our standards 
concerning Church government, viz. : 

That " the Lord Jesus, as King and Head of His Church, hath therein 
appointed a government distinct from the civil magistrate. , ' And "to these 
officers the keys of the kingdom of heaven are committed." [Conf. c, xxx.] 

That ' ' it belongeth to the overseers and other rulers of the particular 
churches, by virtue of their office and the power which Christ hath given 
them, for edification, not for destruction, to appoint such assemblies and to 



172 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



convene together in them." That of these assemblies "the decrees and 
determinations, if consonant to the Word of God, are to be received with 
reverence and submission — not only for their agreement with the Word, but 
also for the power whereby they are made, as being an ordinance of God, 
appointed thereto." [Conf. chap. xxxi. I, 2.] 

Which several statements, substantially, are more summarily presented 
in the ancient Confession of the Church in these and like statements : 

"This power ecclesiastical is an authority granted by God the Father, 
through the Mediator Jesus Christ, to His Church, gathered and having its 
ground in the Word of God. 

" The policy of the Church flowing from this power is an order or form 
of spiritual government which is exercised by the members appointed 
thereto by the Word of God. " 

In the light of these doctrinal statements, and as necessary inferences from 
them, this Synod and its Presbyteries have maintained : 

That the doctrine of the kingly office of Christ is no abstract theory of 
theology, but of the very first practical importance in the Gospel system, 
since to His office as king His prophetic and priestly offices stand related 
as means to an end. He is a teaching prophet and an atoning priest that 
He may be a reigning king. And His kingly office stands related to the 
government and discipline of the Church as His prophetic and priestly 
offices to the ordinances of the Word and sacraments. While, indeed, the 
acceptance of the doctrine of His kingly offices is not essential to the faith 
that is unto salvation in the sense in which the acceptance of the doctrine of 
His priestly office as exhibiting our justifying righteousness is essential, 
yet the obligation to present truly the doctrines of Christ's kingly office in 
the government and discipline of the Church to the faith of his people is 
of like force with the obligation to present truly the doctrine of His pro- 
phetic and priestly offices in the Word and sacraments. 

That, therefore, the avoidance of all admixture of human maxims, policies 
and expediences in the administration of the government and discipline of 
the Church is a duty of the same obligation as to avoid the admixture of 
human philosophies and theories with the dispensation of the Word, or of 
human fancies with the dispensation of the sacraments. 

That it is, therefore, not only incompetent to the Church courts, but posi- 
tively a perversion of the truth, that they shall assume to consider and de- 
termine any other questions than those which relate to the government, 
order and discipline of Christ's visible kingdom, or to determine these on 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



173 



grounds aside from the Word of God ; or to speak in Christ's name and by 
His authority otherwise than to the faith and conscience of His people 
concerning things to be obeyed as enjoined by the law of Christ. Since, 
according to our standards, even though * 4 there are some circumstances 
concerning the worship of God and government of the Church common to 
human actions and societies, which are to be ordered by the light of nature 
and Christian prudence," yet even these "must be ordered according to 
the general rules of the Word which are always to be observed." [Conf. i. 6. ] 
That, therefore, the attempt on the part of tribunals of the Church to 
exercise the authority thus delegated to them by Christ, in determining 
questions merely secular, concerning which His Word makes no such de- 
termination, is "to usurp the prerogatives of the Church's Divine Master," 
and practically to obscure to the faith of His people the doctrine of His 
kingly office, just as the attempt to determine by the spiritual authority 
questions of Christian faith and practice on the ground of human opinions 
and theories of human expediences is practically to obscure to the faith of 
His people Christ's prophetic office. For, precisely in harmony with their 
view of His kingly office in the Church, our standards declare: "Christ 
executeth the office of a prophet in revealing to the Church in all ages by 
His Spirit and Word in divers ways of administration the whole will of God 
in all things concerning their edification and salvation." [Large Cat. Q. 43. ] 

In full accordance with these views of the doctrines of Christ's kingly 
office in His Church, this Synod and its Presbyteries have maintained : 

2. Concerning the origin, nature and functions of Church 
Government as contrasted with and related to the Civil 
Government. 

That, according to our standards, "the visible Church consists of all 
those throughout the world that profess the true religion, together with 
their children, and is the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, the house and 
family of God, out of which there is no ordinary possibility of salvation. 
Unto this Catholic visible Church Christ hath given the ministry, oracles 
and ordinances of God, for the gathering and perfecting of the saints in this 
life, to the end of the world, and doth by His own presence and Spirit, 
according to His promise, make them effectual thereunto. There is no 
other head of the Church but the Lord Jesus Christ. [Conf. chap. xxv. 1, 
2, 6. ] And the Lord Jesus Christ, as King and Head of His Church, hath 



174 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



appointed a government in the hand of Church officers, distinct from the 
civil magistrate. [Conf. chap. xxx. I.] "These Assemblies ought not to 
possess any civil jurisdiction. Their power is wholly moral or spiritual, 
and that only ministerial and declarative." [Form of Gov. chap. viii. 2.] 
And "these Synods and Councils are to handle or conclude nothing but 
that which is ecclesiastical, and are not to intermeddle with civil affairs 
which concern the Commonwealth." [Conf. chap. xxxi. 4.] 

And as it is the Lord Christ who, in the execution of His mediatorial 
office of King "in calling out of the world a people to Himself and giving 
them officers, laws and censures whereby He visibly governs them," gives 
the Church power ; so, on the other hand, according to our standards : 

It is " God as the supreme Lord and King of the world, who hath 
ordained civil magistrates to be under Him over the people fbr His own 
glory and the public good, and to this end hath armed them with the power 
of the sword for the defense and encouragement of them that are good and 
for the punishment of evil-doers." 

But "civil magistrates may not assume to themselves the administration 
of the Word and Sacraments, or the power of the keys of the Kingdom of 
Heaven, or in the least interfere in matters of Faith." And, as the rule 
for guidance in this government is, primarily, not the revealed Word, but 
the light of nature, so. "infidelity or difference in religion doth not make 
void the magistrate's just and legal authority nor free the people from their 
due obedience to Him." [Conf. chap, xxiii. 3, 4.] 

This account of these two separate ordinances of government for men, as 
differing fundamentally, in that the one is from Christ as Mediatorial King 
and Head of His elect people, the other from " God the Supreme King and 
Ruler of the world:" and in that the one contemplates men as sinners, 
related to God the Savior ; the other, men as creatures, related to God the 
Creator — is thus summarily expressed in the Ancient Confession : 

"This power and policy ecclesiastical is different and distinct in its own 
nature from that power and policy which is called the civil power, and 
appertains to the civil government of the Commonwealth. 

" For this power ecclesiastical flows immediately from God and the Me- 
diator Jesus Christ, and is spiritual." 

Furthermore, as these two governments thus differ in their origin, nature 
and purpose, so, according to our standards, they have, as already inti- 
mated, primarily, a different rule to guide their action. As to the rule to 
guide the Church, it has already been said, " Christ executeth the office of 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



!7S 



a prophet in revealing to the Church in all ages, by His Spirit and Word, in 
divers ways of administration, the whole will of God in all that concerns 
their edification and salvation. [Larger Cat. Q. 43.] 

So, again, " God alone is Lord of the conscience, and has left it free from 
the doctrines and commandments of men which are in any thing contrary 
to His Word, or beside it in matters of faith or worship. [Conf. chap, 
xx. 2.] 

So, again, "The Supreme Judge, by which all controversies of religion 
are to be determined, and all decrees of council, opinions of ancient writers, 
doctrines of men and private opinions are to be examined, and in whose 
sentence we are to rest, can be no other than the Holy Spirit speaking in 
Scripture. [Conf. c. i. 6.] 

On the other hand, touching the light which all men have as a rule to 
guide in the administration of civil government, our standards teach, in ac- 
cordance with the express declaration of Scripture, that : 

" The light of nature shows that there is a God who hath Lordship and 
Sovereignty over all ; is good and doeth good unto all ; and is therefore to 
be feared, praised, trusted in, and loved with all the heart." [Conf. xxi. I.] 

' 6 The light of nature and the works of creation and Providence do so far 
manifest the goodness, wisdom and power of God as to leave men inexcu- 
sable." [Conf. c. i. 1.] 

"The Gentiles having not the law are a law unto themselves; which 
show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bear- 
ing witness." [Rom. ii. 12-15. ] "Because that which may be known of God 
is manifest in them, for God hath showed it unto them [Rom. i. 19]; so 
that they are without excuse." 

Some circumstances concerning the worship of God and government of 
the Church, common to human actions and societies, are to be ordered by the 
light of nature, [Conf. i. 7.] 

"Infidelity or difference in religion doth not make void the magistrate's 
just and legal authority, nor free the people from their due obligations to 
him. ' ' [ Conf. xxiii. 4. ] 

This difference in the rule and the subject matter of the two orders of 
government, the ancient Confession expresses summarily thus : 

" Therefore this power and policie of the Kirk should lean upon the Word 
immediately as the only ground thereof. 

"The magistrate commands external things for external peace and quiet- 
ness amongst the subjects. The minister handles external things only for 



176 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



conscience sake." ' ' The magistrate handles external things only and ac- 
tions done before men, but the spiritual ruler both inward affections and ex- 
ternal actions in respect of conscience by the Word of God." 

"The magistrate claims and gets obedience by the sword and other ex- 
ternal means, but the minister by the spiritual sword and spiritual means." 

From these teachings of our standards touching the fundamental differ- 
ence — in origin, rule of guidance, nature, functions and design — between 
the spiritual and the temporal power, this Synod and its Presbyteries have 
maintained as against the assumption of the Church courts on the one 
hand to entertain and determine questions of civil policy, and of the civil 
government on the other hand to determine questions of worship and the 
qualifications of members of Church courts : 

That, though both governments are of Divine institution — one imme- 
diately, the other mediately — and both may exercise their authority sev- 
erally over the same persons in different capacities, and both have in view, 
as their end, the glory of God, yet they move in spheres altogether extrinsic 
to each other. 

That the Church of God is a supernatural institute, immediately of su- 
pernatural origin and authority, whereas the State is a natural institute, 
only mediately of Divine authority, and growing out of the social constitu- 
tution for which man was created and fitted. 

That the laws and ordinances of the Church are all in the supernatural 
order, directly revealed by the Spirit and Word of Christ to His Kingdom ; 
whereas the laws and ordinances of the State are in the natural order, 
framed and fashioned by the natural intelligence of men, as guided by the 
light of nature. 

That the Church is a supernatural agency for the spiritual interests of 
man as immortal, here and hereafter; whereas, the State is a natural 
agency for the promotion of man's temporal interests of life, liberty and 
property. 

That the Church's Lawgiver and Head, speaking through these ordinances 
and laws by the men whom he calls, qualifies and commissions, is the Lord 
Jesus Christ; whereas, the head and lawgivers of the State are men — such 
rulers as the people clothe with authority to represent and rule over them, 
and who speak in the name of the people. 

That the subject of Church government is man contemplated as a sinner; 
whereas, the subject of civil government is man contemplated as a creature. 

That the constituent elements of the Spiritual Commonwealth are the 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



177 



Elect of God, the families that call upon the name of the Lord, whom Christ 
covenants to redeem ; whereas, the constituent elements of the civil com- 
monwealth are the families of men as citizens indiscriminately, which it aims 
to protect in their rights by repressing the lawless and wicked. 

That the efficient power of the Church is the power of the keys, the 
ministry of the Word and ordinances, aiming to gain a voluntary obedience 
by moral suasion ; whereas, the efficient power of the State is the power of 
the sword to enforce a compulsory obedience, having special reference to the 
repression of the lawless. 

That the laws and ordinances of the Church deal with the wrong actions 
of men as sins against God; whereas, the laws and ordinances of the State 
deal with the wrong actions of men as misdemeanors and crimes against 
men. 

That the laws and ordinances of the Church are in their nature disciplin- 
ary — a means of grace, and designed to realize the idea of grace ; whereas 
the laws of the State are in their nature vindicatory for the suppression of 
wickedness by an appeal to fear, and are designed to realize the idea of 
justice. 

That, therefore, the Church has manifestly no commission either to dis- 
charge any functions of the State, or to direct, advise or assist the State ; 
nor has the Church light in regard to the affairs of the State which the State 
has not already ; nor, since her authority is spiritual, and resting on moral 
suasion only, has it any adaptation to the purposes of a government force. 
Neither can the State have any commission from God to discharge the 
functions of the Church, nor the ability to do so, since, aside from the fact 
that its compulsory power is inapplicable to things of religion, even though 
the State may have the advantage of the inspired Word of God current 
among its citizens to give additional clearness and force to the teachings of 
nature and reason, yet the State has not the special illumination of the Holy 
Spirit, which alone can interpret the Word for the purposes of the Church. 
Nor is anything plainer from experience than that the unconverted states- 
man, accepting the Word of God intellectually merely, however he may 
thereby be made wiser as to natural things, is not made more competent to 
legislate for the Church than though he were merely a refined and enlight- 
ened pagan. Nor has anything more certainly tended to enfeeble the 
spiritual life of the Church than the mistake of courting favor and seeking 
the alliance of rulers and statesmen, who merely accept intellectually, and s 
12 



i 7 8 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M ? PHEETERS, D. D. 



therefore, treat respectfully, the Word of Christ and His ordinances, as 
though thereby the kingdom of Christ can be strengthened. 

Hence this Synod and its Presbyteries have steadfastly protested against 
and resisted the assumption of authority by the Church courts, to advise, 
direct and assist the Civil Government in its policy by the exercise of their 
spiritual authority, or to interpose the power of the spiritual sword for 
enforcing any theories of social organization, or theories of labor, or poli- 
tical theories, or to direct men as citizens in the choice of their civil policy. 

And, on the other hand, they have protested against and resisted every 
invitation by the Church courts to the State to assume, and every assumption 
by the State to direct the ordinances of worship in God's house, or to inter- 
fere with the conscientious convictions of men, so long as those convictions 
did not develop themselves in overt acts. For our great civil "act estab- 
lishing religious freedom " nobly declares, as defining the limits of the civil 
power: "It is time enough for the rightful purposes of Civil Government 
for its officers to interfere when principles break out into overt acts against 
peace and good order." 

In full accordance, also, with the foregoing views of the doctrine concerning 
the kingly office of Christ in his Church, this Synod and its Presbyteries 
have maintained. 

3. Concerning the powers of the several courts of the church 
and their relations to each other, and to the office-bearers 
and people. 

That, while "It is lawful and agreeable to the Word of God that the 
Church be governed by several sorts of assemblies, congregational, classical 
and synodical," that "There should be a subordination of congrega- 
tional, classical, provincial and national assemblies for the government of 
the Church." And this for the reason, " That the several different congre- 
gations of believers, taken collectively, constitute one Church of Christ, 
called, emphatically, the Church ; and that a larger part of the Church or 
a representation thereof should govern a smaller, and determine controver- 
sies which arise therein." [Form of Gov. chap, xii — note.] That is, that 
the power of the Assembly representing the whole should be over the power 
of the Assembly representing a part, yet not so over it as claiming concur- 
rent jurisdiction with it, but simply as appellate and corrective of the 
exercise of its power. Since the power of the whole is also in every part, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



179 



and the same promise of the special presence of the Lord Jesus Christ is 
made to the "two or three " gathered to determine the case of the offending 
brother, as to the apostolic college representing the whole Church. [Com- 
pare Matt, xviii. 15-20 with Matt, xxviii. 20.] 

And they have maintained, also, that "All Church power, whether 
exercised by the body in general or in the way of representation, by dele- 
gated authority, is ministerial and declarative, and that all their decisions 
should be founded upon the revealed will of God." And that " There is 
much greater danger from the usurped claim of making laws than from the 
right of judging of laws already made (in the Scriptures) and common to 
all who profess the gospel." [Form of Gov. chap. i. 7.] 

* 1 That the Supreme Judge by which all controversies of religion are to 
be determined and all decrees of councils are to be examined, and in whose 
sente?ice zve are to rest, can be no other but the Holy Spirit speaking in the 
Scriptures." [Conf. chap. i. 6.] 

That "God alone is Lord of the conscience, and hath left it free from 
the commandments of men which are in any way contrary to His Word, or 
beside it in matters of faith and worship. So that to believe such doctrines 
or to obey such commandment out of conscience is to betray true liberty of 
conscience ; and the requiring an implicit faith and an absolute blind obe- 
dience is to destroy liberty of conscience and reason, also." [Conf. 
chap. xx. 2.] 

In the light of these declarations of our standards, taken in connection 
with those before cited touching the execution of the kingly and prophetic 
offices of Christ in His visible Church, this Synod and its Presbyteries have 
maintained, in regard to the acts of the General Assembly against which 
they have protested : 

First. That any acts and deliverances of the Assembly which involve a 
usurpation of powers by that body not assigned to the General Assembly in 
the Constitution — which Constitution we hold to be consonant to the Word 
of God, and therefore to transcend the Constitution is to do also what is 
contrary to the Word of God — or any acts and deliverances of the Assembly 
concerning questions of national or other civil policy — these being questions 
in the natural order, which "God the Supreme Ruler" hath appointed to 
be determined by the civil magistrate, and questions which the Lord Christ, 
as king and prophet of the Church, hath not determined in his Word, ex- 
cept as questions of sin and of duty that concern the conscience — all such 
acts and deliverances are not only in themselves errors as transcending the 



i8o 



MEMOIR OF S. B. MTHEETERS, D. D. 



powers of the Assembly and the sphere of the Church, but also as tending 
to obscure the great doctrine of the kingly and prophetic offices of Christ 
as still executed in his visible Church. 

That, therefore, while it is a duty to receive with reverence and submis- 
sion all such decrees as are consonant to the Word, yet such dangerous 
errors are not only to be silently disregarded as mere "commandments of 
men, to obey which would be to betray liberty of conscience," but are to be 
testified against ; and all claims of authority resting upon them are to be re- 
sisted, and this for the following considerations, to-wit : 

That 1 ' the Supreme Judge by whom all controversies of religion are to 
be decided and in whose decision we are to rest," is not the Supreme Court, 
but "the Holy Spirit speaking in the Scriptures." 

That it is the duty, more especially of every office-bearer and court of 
the Church alike to bear witness to the truth as against error, since to this 
obligation every office-bearer is held by his ordination vow to study the 
purity as well as the peace of the Church. 

That it is expressly enjoined upon the Presbyteries in the Constitution 
itself thus to bear witness for the truth — being required to "resolve ques- 
tions of doctrine and discipline and to condemn erroneous opinions." Nor 
is there any limitation to the requirement excluding from consideration any 
erroneous opinions because uttered by the General Assembly. On the con- 
trary, they must for that very reason condemn the errors, since errors of the 
General Assembly more directly affect the purity and peace of their churches 
than the errors of any other. 

That not only does the Constitution enjoin it, but the Lord Christ, as we 
have seen, gives His special promise to be present with the lower court in 
its act not less than to be present "always" with those representing the 
whole Church. And there is every reason to hope that the Holy Spirit will 
use the faithful testimony of the lower court as the means whereby to extend 
in the Church a revival of love for the truth, and thereby restore it from 
error. 

That, therefore, nothing is more absurd and dangerous to Christian liberty 
than the conception, by an utterly false analogy, that the office-bearers and 
lower courts are bound to obey as law, until repealed, an act that is uncon- 
stitutional, and, therefore, not consonant to the Word of God, as citizens 
obey civil acts until repealed. Such a conception could occur only by reason 
of utter forgetfulness of all that our standards teach concerning liberty of 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. l8l 

consc'ence and the non-obligatory character of decrees of councils that are 
not according to the Word. 

That it is an argument of no real force which urges, to the contrary of 
these views, that they open the door to constant acts of disobedience, resist- 
ance and schism in the Church and make Church government impossible. 
Since, on the one hand, Christ the king reigns still in His visible Church, 
though His representatives may be unfaithful, and by His Spirit enlighten- 
ing the minds of His people, He will in His own way and time heal the 
declensions and dissensions of His Church. And, on the other hand, still 
more is it true in ecclesiastical than in political governments that * ' all ex- 
perience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer while evils 
are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing forms of government to 
which they have long been accustomed." The long suffering of this Synod, 
for seven years past, fully confirms this declaration ; and the apparent un- 
willingness to resist even yet on the part of many who are believed to concur 
with this Synod, and who at the beginning protested with it against the acts 
of the General Assembly as violations of the Constitution and a usurpation 
of the prerogatives of the Church's Divine Master, afford still further melan- 
choly proof of the long suffering of Christian men in bearing with error and 
usurpation. 

And, finally, while maintaining a steadfast opposition to the acts and 
deliverances of the Assembly already recited, as their testimony for the 
foregoing general doctrines concerning the Church, this Synod and its 
Presbyteries have, in the light of these doctrines, maintained the following 
principles : 

4. Concerning the interpretation of our form of government 
and discipline with reference to the functions, powers and 
mutual relations of the courts of the church. 

First, As to the functions and sphere of the General Assembly and other 
courts, they have maintained, and desire to have it recognized as the 
accepted interpretation, that the Constitution of the Church assigns to the 
General Assembly no function to the end that it may counsel, direct or 
assist the civil government. 

That neither does the Constitution assign to the Assembly any authority 
to consider and determine — as in the deliverances of 1 861, 1862, 1863 and 



l82 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



1864, on the " State of the Country," the Assembly appears, and is under- 
stood, to have considered and determined — either : 

Questions of the policy of the State touching its citizens, or of the duties 
of citizens, as such, in respect of the policy of the State ; 

Or, Questions between different interpretations of the Federal Consti- 
tution; 

Or, Questions, not of duties toward the recognized Cseasar, but of 
deciding between rival Caesars ; 

Or, Questions as between different theories of allegiance to the Civil 
Government ; 

Or, Questions concerning the social structure of different political com- 
munities and their systems of labor ; 

Or, Questions touching the military duties and policy of the National 
Government, and the duties of citizens to uphold the Government in its 
policy. 

Nor can they regard the pretense set up as a reason for considering and 
determining such questions — viz. : ' ' That certain civil acts rise up into the 
region of morals," otherwise than as an utter denial, in the face of our 
standards, that the State is competent to determine concerning t}ie moral 
acts of its citizens ; and a denial that the State has, in the natural order, 
any code of morals given of God the Supreme Ruler, through reason and 
the light of nature, for the judgment of the moral acts of its citizens. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. JVl'PHEETERS, D. D. 



183 



CHAPTER XI. 

INTERVIEW WITH MR. LINCOLN APPEAL TO SYNOD. 

Dr. McPheeters, having drawn up a communication to At- 
torney General Bates, determines not to send the paper, but 
decides, accompanied by an Elder, to carry the letter in person 
to Washington. During this visit he held an interview with 
the President, an account of which shall be given in his own 
words : 

Believing that the history of my banishment from Missouri by the mili- 
tary authorities will hereafter have some interest, as showing the character 
of the civil war, and the manner in which military men felt authorized to 
act in regard to the Church of Christ, I have reduced to writing an accurate 
statement of an interview I had with the President of the United States. 

Soon after receiving from Provost-Marshal Col. Dick the order of ban- 
ishment, I determined to lay the case before the Government, in order that 
it might not be responsible for what I considered a most gross and unneces- 
sary infringement of the liberty of the Church. My first plan was to draw 
up a formal protest and send it to the Attorney-General, Mr. Bates, and 
ask him to present it in such form as would be proper ; and I did draw up 
such a paper addressed to Mr. Bates. Afterward, I determined to go on 
myself and present the case in person. I left St. Louis on the afternoon of 
Tuesday, December 23, 1862, and was accompanied by Capt. W. W. 
Greene, an elder of my church. Owing to not making the necessary con- 
nection, we did not reach Washington City until Friday evening, December 
26. Immediately upon our arriving, Capt. Greene and myself went to see 
Judge Bates at his residence. I stated to Mr. Bates, with whom I was 
acquainted, that the object of my visit to Washington was to lay before him 
some statements concerning my banishment, and to ask his attention to 
them, as the law officer of the Government. I did not have the paper de- 
signed for him with me, but I handed to him the order of Gen. Curtis, 
upon reading which he immediately remarked that, being a military order, 



184 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

it did not come in his department — that the proper person to review the 
matter was the Secretary of War or the President. After some consultation 
with him I determined, if possible, to bring it before the President, and 
Mr. Bates was kind enough to agree to get me an interview with the Presi- 
dent on the next day, if circumstances would allow ; and I was to call at 
his office, between ten and eleven o'clock the next day, for that purpose. 

I had little or no conversation with Mr. Bates that evening on this sub- 
ject, save that he advised me, in order to save the President's time, and to 
present my case to my own satisfaction, to draw up what I had to present 
in writing. This I intended to do, but when I got to my room, finding 
myself very much exhausted by my journey, I determined to present to 
the President the paper which I had prepared for the Attorney-General, and 
which I had with me in Washington. Next morning (Saturday) I went in 
company with Mr. Bates to the President's house, and after waiting a short 
time I was admitted to an audience. After the customary salutations the 
President requested Mr. Bates to remain to the interview, which he 
agreed to do. I handed to him the order of Gen. Curtis, and told 
him that I held in my hand a paper which, with his permission, I 
would proceed to read, as it presented the case which I had to sub- 
mit. He gave his assent, and I read the paper, only omitting a 
few sentences of the introduction. After I had finished, the President 
remarked that Mr. Postmaster-General Blair had given him some letters 
and papers on the same subject, which had been sent him from St. Louis. 
It was evident that these letters had prejudiced the President against me, 
for he remarked, "If this order should be revoked it would be considered 
a secession triumph. " He remarked further, that he had read with care 
"my card " (published in the Democrat). The President then went on to 
speak of "the rebellion." He said he did not know that it would be put 
down. He doubted if the Government had the power to suppress it — that 
the means that were necessary, it seemed, the country would not allow. 
He went on to speak of Magruder, Gen. Lee, Breckinridge, Morehead 
and others, who were known to be traitors before they took up arms. They 
are now the very soul of the rebellion ; yet if they had been seized they 
would have said, "What have we done ? " and the country would not have 
sustained him in arresting them. He seemed to think that things were in 
a sad way in St. Louis. "It is doubtful, from all that I can learn," said 
he, "whether the United States or Jeff. Davis have most authority in St. 
Louis," which no little surprised me, and I could not help thinking that he 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 185 

had received strange information as to the state of things in Missouii. The 
President said to me, "I presume if you were in Jeff. Davis' dominions you 
would preach and pray differently from what you do here ? " I replied, 
"No, sir; as a minister of the Gospel, I conduct the worship of God's 
house without reference to human government. I hold that there are two 
kingdoms — both ordained of God — the State and the Church. I recog- 
nize in you the chief officer of the United States. With your duties 
I do not interfere. I am a minister or officer in Christ's Church, and 
I do not recognize any authority over me as a minister of the Gospel." He 
remarked that he had seen that I had performed a most singular baptism in 
St. Louis ; that all he knew about it was learned from "my card." I told 
him it was true, I had baptized a child, at the parents' request, by the name 
of Sterling Price, and that in doing this I only followed the Directory of 
Worship of my Church. Here Attorney-General Bates remarked that in 
baptizing the child by the name given it by the parents the minister clearly 
had no option ; that I could not have done differently with propriety ; that 
if his pastor should refuse to baptize his child by the name he should select, 
he should ask the Church courts to try him for neglect of duty. The Presi- 
dent made no reply to this, but went on to make some remarks about the 
State and the Church, saying that the line between them was not very clearly 
denned, &c. Mr. Bates said that while that was true in some respects, it 
was clear that the military authorities had no right or power to conduct a 
Church. He called the President's attention to the fact that my church had 
been seized by the military, not for a hospital, but for a church, and to be 
conducted as a church. Mr. Bates further remarked that, as to me person- 
ally he had nothing to say, further than that he knew my standing in St. 
Louis to be of the highest respectability. If, however, he has been guilty, 
continued Mr. B., of any violation of the law, or any act of hostility to the 
Government, let him be punished like any other citizen ; but it will not do 
for the Government to allow any such direct interference with the Church as 
this order of General Curtis seems to contemplate. The President remarked 
that he did not see that there was any special ground in my case why such 
an order should have been issued. "It is not charged, as far as appears, 
that you have violated your oath." I remarked that no such charge had 
ever been made. He went on to say that those clergymen who had never 
been in the habit of praying for the Government, their not doing so now 
would not be cause of suspicion ; but where they had been in the habit of 
doing this and now ceased, it would seem to imply something. In the 



i86 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



course of the conversation Mr. Lincoln arose from his seat and walking 
across the room once or twice, said: * 'There was a difficulty in knowing 
what to do with such cases, very much like the difficulty that Shylock had 
in knowing how to get the pound of flesh without the blood.'' The Presi- 
dent seemed to take some interest in the case, and was no little perplexed, 
apparently, in knowing exactly what to do. The decided impression made 
on my mind was, that he did not approve of the order, yet he seemed un- 
willing to revoke it. At last he asked me for the papers and documents 
connected with it, saying that he would examine into it still further. I gave 
him my pamphlet, Mr. Strong's letter, as it was published in the Democrat, 
of December 13, and "my card" to the public, as printed in the same pa- 
per December 20, also the paper I had read to him, and he filed them away. 
Seeing that he wished the interview terminated, both Mr. Bates and myself 
arose to depart. As I arose I remarked to him that the ten days allowed 
me by the order expired the next day, He said : "As to that, I will pro- 
tect you until a decision is reached, and Mr. Bates will be my witness if it 
escapes my memory." I reminded him that the order affected my family 
as well as myself. He immediately replied: "I will attend to that, too." 
And taking his pen he wrote a dispatch to General Curtis, which he read to 
Mr. Bates and myself. It was in these or very similar words : " Suspend 
the order concerning Dr. McPheeters and family until further orders." 

President Lincoln, according to promise, immediately sent a 
dispatch to Maj.-Gen. Curtis to "suspend the order against Dr. 
McPheeters until further orders." 

Dr. McPheeters reached his home in Missouri on January 2, 
1863. On the same day he wrote to Judge Bates, saying, " I 
found the enclosed order awaiting me, which I send you : 

The order made against you on the 19th of December is modified until 
further orders, to this extent, that you are not required to leave the State. 

Bv order of Mai. Gen. Curtis. 

F. A. DICK, 
Lieut. -Col., Provost-Marshal. 
" You see that I was not wrong in saying that the telegram of 
the President would not affect my case. I am not disposed to 
resist this last order of General Curtis. I shall obey it. But I 
felt it but proper to let you see how matters stand. I am only 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 187 

sorry that Pine Street Church is to remain closed, and as I see 
plainly that, first or last, I shall have to leave this State, I 
only hope to have sufficient time to prepare for my departure, 
and on that account should like to know the result reached at 
as early a time as may be." 

The order of Curtis, however, was not modified, although it 
was on this very second day of January that Mr. Lincoln wrote 
the celebrated letter in which he forbids his generals to " run 
the churches." On the 4th of March the Pine Street Church 
building was released, but the military authorities still held the 
noble pastor in bonds. Finally, a friend, on his own motion, 
visited the Commanding General and essayed to get the mili- 
tary order set aside. 

On March 28, 1863, Gen. Curtis writes from his own head- 
quarters in St. Louis directly to Dr. McPheeters. He says : 

Restraints having been imposed on your exercise of public functions 
because of supposed disloyalty, some of your friends have traversed the 
fact of your being disloyal, and desire my personal intervention. With a 
view of ascertaining your sentiments, I submit to you the following inter- 
rogatories for your answer : 

1. Do you wish the rebellion crushed, and are you in favor of the restora- 
tion of the national authority over all the country ? 

2. In the confliet of war now existing do you desire the success of the 
Federal and the defeat of the rebel forces ? 

To this letter Dr. McPheeters replies on March 31 : 

I have the honor of acknowledging the receipt of your favor of the 28th, 
the Sabbath intervening between its date and reception. 

Allow me, General, to express my thanks for the kind manner in which 
you received and heard my friends, and for your further kindness in review- 
ing the decision in my case. Under other circumstances than those in 
which I find myself placed it might be proper and becoming in me to 
express freely and fully both my desires and opinions, as far as I have 
desires or have formed opinions, in relation to our sad national calamities. 
But the position in which my seemingly hard fate has placed me is peculiar 



l88 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

and embarrassing, and my answer to your interrogatories must be deter- 
mined in view of all the circumstances surrounding me and my convictions 
of duty. I do not mean that I have, or that any citizen, however sit- 
uated, can or ought to have, any difficulty in acknowledging his allegiance. 
Certainly no such difficulty is in my way. When, in the General Assembly 
of my Church, it was intimated that I was disloyal, I promptly and thor- 
oughly repelled the insinuation openly and before the whole country. And 
when the Convention of this State, by ordinance, required a most carefully 
prepared oath of allegiance to be taken by those who solemnize the rite of 
matrimony, in obedience to the teachings of my Church on that particular 
matter (Directory Worship, ch. xi. sec. i), and from a sense of duty, I vol- 
untarily subscribed and filed it, as required. And, in this connection, allow 
me to say that one of the things which I have found it hardest to bear in the 
course of the authorities toward me is, that I have not only been treated as 
though I had taken this oath without honor or conscience, but whatever 
influence my office or character give me is made to encourage and sustain 
those who are shaking the very foundations of society by denying the 
solemn and binding obligation of an oath. But I forbear. I have said so 
much as due to myself and to kind friends who have interfered in my 
behalf. 

Now, as to the particular interrogatories propounded. They are of the 
same import as those to which certain members of my Church and congre- 
gation demand of me answers. 

I denied the right to require an answer from me, and in doing so used 
this language : * 'And this position I take not from any disposition to stand 
out captiously upon an abstract question of right, nor from any disposition 
improperly to conceal my political views on political questions, but from a 
conscientious conviction that I can not yield the thing you claim without, to 
the full extent of my example, compromising the rights of every minister 
and endangering the peace of all our Churches." W T hen I then refused to 
answer these questions, they made appeal to the public and, directly or indi- 
rectly, to the military authorities. The result was, that military order No. 
152 was made and issued, which, for my silence and refusal to answer these 
members of my Church, banished me from my pulpit, and, as originally 
made, from this State. This order is, in express terms, on its face, based 
on my position above quoted, taken with the members of my Church. 

If I was right then, it can not now be proper that I should give an answer 
which I then declined on principle — a principle on the maintenance of which 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 189 

I then and now believe depends, in a great degree, the peace, the purity 
and the spiritual power of the Church. 

I do not expect you, General, to see all the consequences of a precedent 
such as my answer to the questions proposed would establish as I think 
I see them. But this I think I have a right to expect — that you will see 
that, believing as I do, I can not answer the questions which you proposed, 
under the circumstances in which they are propounded, without aban- 
doning my religious convictions and wounding my conscience. I dare not, 
then, whatever be the consequences to me personally, make such a reply to 
your kind letter as you probably expected. 

But I trust that I have said enough to satisfy you that all charges of dis- 
loyalty against me are without foundation. In this connection I may be 
pardoned for quoting from your circular letter defining loyalty. You say : 
" Prima facie, an oath of allegiance is evidence of loyalty, and when men 
have taken upon themselves such obligations, and have lived and acted con- 
sistently with them, they should be regarded as loyal." I have taken the 
oath voluntarily and conscientiously. I have lived consistently with it. 
Your own words decide the rest — I " should be regarded as loyal." 
Under your order, and with any construction that could be put upon it, I 
would be allowed to buy or sell, to practice medicine, to plead law — why 
not to preach the gospel ? 

But I will not weary your patience. I thank you for reading so much as 
I have written. I have never believed that in any thing that has occurred 
you have designed to do me injustice. And I hope that you will see your 
way clear to remove the hindrance to my returning to my work and calling. 
In any event, I shall try to so live and act that those who know me will be 
constrained to confess that I am not a bad, much less a dangerous, citizen. 

It has been seen that the Government exhibited signs of 
placability, but the " committee " were not satisfied. Seizing, 
therefore, a moment of intense excitement in the State, the 
Presbytery of St. Louis was called to a special meeting on the 
request of three ministers and four elders, only one of the min- 
isters having a charge, three of the elders being of Mr. Porter's 
church, and of the whole number of ministers and elders only 
one elder a member of Pine Street Church. This special 



190 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

meeting convened on the 15th of May, 1863, and was com- 
posed of only sixteen out of nearly sixty ministers and elders 
in the Presbytery. 

Up to this period Dr. McPheeters was firmly resolved, cost 
what it might to himself individually, to hold to the pastoral 
relation. But on " the morning before the Presbytery met he 
was reliably informed that the Provost- Marshal had determined, 
if the Presbytery persisted in refusing to expel him from his 
Church at the request of the minority, to imprison or banish 
every one of them. Dr. McPheeters sent messages to the 
different depots to prevent the ministers from meeting together; 
but they would meet and would not vote for his expulsion. 
Immediately on the convening of the Presbytery, to prevent 
any action, he handed in his resignation, not being able 
(considering the source of his information in regard to the 
contemplated action of the Provost-Marshal) to explain why. 
As far as concerned himself he was ready to suffer anything ; 
but knowing what these men and their families would suffer, 
he was not prepared to see them encounter it all, as it then 
seemed, for his sake." 

Thus it will be seen that Dr. McPheeters sent in his resigna- 
tion at this time under duress of the military, and only as a 
supposed safeguard for his brethren. But even under these 
circumstances Presbytery sternly refused to accept it. And 
afterward, when the matter came to be known to the Pine 
Street congregation, they assembled and resolved, by a vote of 
91 to 56 " that the meeting do not agree to and protest against 
the dissolution of the existing relation with Rev. S. B. McPhee- 
ters as pastor of our Church, and that we request him to with- 
draw his resignation offered to St. Louis Presbytery." It is, 
therefore, plain that neither Dr. McPheeters nor his congrega- 
tion asked the Presbytery to dissolve the relation which existed 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 191 

between the pastor and his flock. But as this matter is fully 
discussed by Judge Wood and Dr. McPheeters in their speeches 
before the Assembly, any further comments on the subject are 
withheld. 

Here, then, was a minister of Christ, whose reputation for 
purity of life filled the whole land, persecuted by the professed 
Church of God because he would not submissively yoke him- 
self to the chariot wheels of Caesar. Never a vestige of proof 
could be obtained to establish disloyalty. The oath of alle- 
giance had been taken and kept. No man living witnessed an 
act or heard a word from the lips of McPheeters to which the 
sternest and most inexorable government could except, yet 
because the man could not make the pulpit the vehicle of 
bloody politics, and in his prayers fill the ear of the Almighty 
with petitions for the success of this or that party, his own 
brethren cried : " Persecute and take him, and let there be 
none to deliver." This unoffending and peerless minister of 
Jesus, thus driven away from his flock by the efforts of " false 
brethren," was obliged to look around upon the world for some 
occupation by which he and his household could be provided 
with bread, for it was his settled determination not to accept 
a salary from a congregation who were deprived of his services. 
In the office of a government official a position was offered 
and accepted, and by services rendered there a scanty provis- 
ion for himself and family came into his hands. He also 
preached here and there, as opportunity arose, and now and 
then a pecuniary acknowledgment was placed in his hands. 
These testimonials reached him sometimes, as manna from 
heaven, just at the very moment when, like the widow of 
Zarephath, he gathered sticks to bake the last handful of meal. 

He was not even allowed to stand up before his accusers and 
utter a single word of defense; for it will be remembered 



192 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



" that about the last of March or the first of April, Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters, by virtue of his office as a minister of the gospel, a 
member of Presbytery, and having a personal interest in 
business before Presbytery, then to meet on the 8th of April, 
desired to attend, and application was made to General Curtis 
to know if Iris attendance would be a violation of order 152. 
General Curtis said his attendance was prohibited by that 
order; and he did not attend. Again, in May following, at a 
special meeting of Presbytery, he had a personal case, involv- 
ing his highest and dearest interests. He then made applica- 
tion to General Curtis, through Brig.-Gen'l. Edwards, to 
so far relax the order as to allow him to attend, which was 
denied and refused by General Curtis. He was denied and 
refused the liberty of attending and officiating on funeral 
and marriage occasions ; in short, the prohibition was under- 
stood to extend to "all ministerial acts and offices.'' When 
General Schofield superseded General Curtis, and after the 
mischief was done, an order, dated June 3d, gave him " per- 
mission to attend the meeting of the Presbytery of St. Louis, 
for the purpose of defending his ministerial character, but not 
to act as a member of such body." At the very moment when 
Dr. McPheeters was denied the right of self defense before his 
own Presbytery he was allowed, without challenge, to practice 
in the U. S. Court of Claims, and to receive, without question, 
a fee from his client. Even the stern military authorities, 
when left to their own unprejudiced judgment, could repose 
confidence in his integrity, fairness and ability, while he was 
hunted down like a hare by his brethren and co-presbyters. 

In the meantime an appeal was taken to the Synod of Mis- 
souri against the unconstitutional proceedings of Presbytery. 
It was submitted to Presbytery by W. W. Greene, as representa- 
tive of the Pine Street Church. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 193. 

To the Moderator of St. Louis Presbytery : 

Reverend and Dear Sir : The undersigned herewith puts into your 
hands, as Moderator of Presbytery, an appeal and complaint to Synod 
against the action of a special meeting of Presbytery, convened in this city 
on the 22d of June, 1863, and which closed its sessions on the 27th of June, 
in dissolving the pastoral relation between the Rev. Samuel B. McPheeters 
and Pine Street Church of St. Louis. 

The grounds of appeal and complaint are the following : 

1. There was no valid or constitutional ground for calling a special meet- 
ing of Presbytery. The difficulties in Pine Street Church — such as they 
were — were all known at the stated meetings and should have been brought 
up then, if it had been considered important to take any steps in relation to 
them. [Baird's Digest, Book V, part I, sec. 4.] 

2. Because this special meeting was called at a time of great excitement 
in the State, and under such circumstances as were calculated to prevent 
members of Presbytery from attending; and the undersigned believes that 
but for this circumstance Presbytery would not have dissolved the relation, 
and he does not, nor do the majority of the members of Pine Street Church 
regard the action of Presbytery as a fair expression of the opinion of that 
body ; and he and they consider the action of Presbytery as a grievous 
wrong, which Synod should not permit to pass unrebuked, and that they 
should reverse the decision of a Presbytery so called. 

3. Because there was no petition from either pastor or Church for a dis- 
solution of the relation. 

Rev. Dr. McPheeters, it is true, put his resignation in the hands of 
Presbytery ; but in a paper which he afterward handed in, and which was 
read before Presbytery, he gave at large his reasons for sending his resigna- 
tion to Presbytery, and that paper (which is made a part of this communi- 
cation, and is marked "A") sets forth in a strong light reasons why Presby- 
tery should not have regarded his resignation as a request for the dissolution 
of the pastoral relation. 

As to the Church, at a meeting called to consider that very subject, a 
vote was had by taking the yeas and nays, when a very large majority 
opposed and protested against Presbytery dissolving the relation. This will 
more fully appear in the records of the meetings of Pine Street Church, 
authentic copies of which are upon record in the Session book of the Church, 
and should be upon the records of Presbytery, and which are also submitted 
as part of this paper. 

13 



194 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



4. Because Presbytery received and heard, as a commissioner from Pine 
Street Church, George P. Strong, when it was well known that he was 
elected a commissioner under circumstances that any court of the Church 
should have refused to hear him, and when it was well known that the ma- 
jority of the Church had asked him to resign if he could not conscientiously 
represent their wishes. All this is plain from the minutes of the Church 
meeting before referred to. The majority of the Church, therefore, feel 
that they were not only deprived of their constitutional right to be heard by 
a commissioner who truly represented their desires and opinions, but that 
they were misrepresented in a way that they consider inflicted on them a 
gross wrong. 

4. Because Presbytery not only received Mr. Strong as a commissioner, 
but they allowed him, in the absence of Dr. McPheeters, to proceed, in a 
long speech, to make an assault upon the moral and Christian character of 
Dr. McPheeters as a man notoriously guilty of high civil crimes, and, un- 
der the shallow pretense of giving rumors, really to lay charges, which, if 
true, or if believed to be true, it was plainly the duty of Mr. Strong to have 
made in the manner the Constitution prescribes, and as plainly improper for 
Presbytery to allow, except as the ground of judicial investigation. And 
the undersigned, in the name of a majority of Pine Street Church, and in 
the name of common justice, asks your reverend body to set aside a de- 
cision which was secured by a course so at war with Presbyterian usage, so 
destructive of the rights of all ministers and the peace of all our Churches. 
No court of our Church has a right to hear such charges, even if true, except 
as a ground for judicial investigation; much less have they a right to hear 
them when they are reckless, wanton and untrue. 

6. Because the undersigned and a majority of the Church believe and are 
fully persuaded that the dissolution of the pastoral relation at this time and 
under these circumstances endangers not only the interest, but the very ex- 
istence of the Church, and they ask your reverend body to interpose and 
set aside the decision of Presbytery, or at least that the whole matter shall 
be sent back for a new hearing and for a fair and full expression on the 
part of Presbytery of its Christian judgment in the premises. 



When Synod met, Dr. McPheeters forwarded the following 
letter : 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



*95 



St. Louis, October 13th, 1863. 
To the Moderator of the Synod of Missouri: 

The Commander of the Department issued, nearly a year ago, an order 
against me, as a minister of the gospel, which makes it a military offense 
for me to sit as a member of a court of Christ's Church, and to deliberate 
on matters pertaining to His Kingdom. While such an order in no degree 
binds my conscience, it is still one which I am compelled to obey. 

For this reason, I shall not be present at the meeting of Synod. The 
records of the Presbytery of St. Louis will inform you of matters deeply 
affecting me as the pastor of one of your Churches, and, in some aspects, 
as a minister of the gospel, which my Presbytery have considered and 
decided. How far the record will present the true state of the case I am 
unable to say, as I was not permitted to be present ; but I have reason to 
believe that the record of Presbytery is defective, in that it contains no 
allusions to important papers which were before that body, and which 
should, in all fairness and propriety, have been before Synod. I was, as I 
before remarked, prohibited from sitting in Presbytery, as a free member 
of the body. I had no opportunity of making even a statement to the 
body. On the other hand, Presbytery heard a long speech from a member 
of my Church, who had no right to be heard, in which my character was 
assailed. 



I96 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

CHAPTER XII. 

LETTER TO GOVERNOR GAMBLE LETTERS OF JUDGE BATES, 

PRESIDENT LINCOLN, ETC. 

Dr. McPheeters once again determined to make an appeal 
to the civil authorities, and, therefore, wrote to Gov. Gamble, 
under date of December 3d, 1863: 

As your time is necessarily occupied by your official duties, it is with 
reluctance that I trouble you with any matters relating to myself. I know, 
too, that the removal of the grievance under which I labor is not imme- 
diately in your hands. What I wish to ask of you, however, is only your 
kind offices in suggesting any thing that it may be proper lor me to do, and 
any assistance in the premises which you may be disposed to give me. I 
flatter myself that my intercourse with you in years past has left the 
impression on you that I will not knowingly make a statement which I do 
not myself believe to be true. 

My case is this : 

On the 19th day of December, 1862, a military order was issued con- 
taining a threefold sentence : 

(1st) Myself and wife were to be banished to specified limits in the Nor- 
thern States. (2d) While I remained in Missouri I was prohibited the 
exercise of my functions as a minister of the gospel. (3d) My Church 
was taken from the control of its ecclesiastical officers and given in charge 
of a commission, who are directed to provide a preacher and conduct the 
services. 

By a subsequent order, dated December 28, 1 862, the sentence of ban- 
ishment was suspended. By a third order, dated March 4, the control of 
my Church was returned to the Church officers. From these several orders 
(copies of which I enclose, marked A, B and C) it will be seen that the 
only part of the original order against me that remains in force is that which 
forbids me the exercise of my distinctive functions as a minister of the Gospel. 
So true is this that it is known to the entire community that for nearly a 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 197 

year I have been in the full and uninterrupted enjoyment of every right of a 
citizen except my ecclesiastical and religious rights. 

Refusing to receive a salary from my congregation for services I was pre- 
vented from rendering, I have been forced to turn to secular pursuits — for 
many months past have found employment in a law office. In this position 
I have not only prepared, but in person presented and passed claims before 
a Commission appointed by the President of the United States. If pre- 
pared, I might practice law. If disposed, I might publicly lecture on his- 
tory, art, or science. I have voted without challenge or objection. In 
short, there is no secular calling which is not as open to me as to any other 
citizen. And yet it would be a military offense for me to preach a sermon, 
to sit in an ecclesiastical court, to administer the Lord's Supper, or to offi- 
ciate at a funeral ! 

The simple, naked fact is, that, as matters now stand, the military authori- 
ties have deposed me from the Gospel ministry, and this is the only griev- 
ance under which I labor, and from which I seek to be relieved. I could 
give a very rational explanation of this strange, not to say absurd, issue of my 
case, but it would require more space than I think proper to occupy. Suffice 
it to say, that it is manifest on the face of the original order that it was no 
part of the purpose of the military authorities, at the time the order was 
issued, to prohibit the exercise of my ministerial functions for a longer 
time than the ten days which were to elapse between the order and the ban- 
ishment. When the order of banishment was suspended, it was so worded 
as to leave the ecclesiastical sentence in force. And thus matters have stood 
up to this time. 

I think I have a right to assume that if there was any valid ground why 
I should have been punished, it would have come to light in a year ; and I 
am confident if there had been any evidence against me at any time during 
the year that I would not have been permitted to remain in the State. The 
truth is, Governor, that the original sentence was hastily issued, upon the 
representation of one or two misguided and prejudiced men, and was pro- 
nounced without my having any examination or trial whatever. This I have 
always regarded as hard treatment. For some months before the order was 
issued, hearing that charges and insinuations were being made against me 
privately, I went in person to both the District Provost-Marshal and the 
Provost- Marshal General and made special request that if charges of any 
kind were preferred against me I might have a hearing before sentence was 
passed. And if this, as it seems to me, reasonable request had been granted, 



I98 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

I firmly believe that no order would ever have been issued. It is most cer- 
tain that the order of December 19 could not be obtained against me now. 
I believe that those who asked and procured it then would not ask it to-day. 
I am much mistaken if they are glad to-day of what they did a year ago. I 
have not, up to this time, presented my case to the General now commanding 
this Department, nor asked him to review it, mainly for two reasons: I. It 
was a case decided by his predecessor. 2. Friends, in whose judgment I 
relied, thought, in the condition of things in Missouri, it was better for me 
patiently to wait. I feel that I have now waited long enough, and think 
something should be done in my case. I am the only minister of any denomi- 
nation in the city prohibited by military authority from preaching. I appeal 
to you, as one acquainted with this community, and acquainted with me, if 
such a distinction against me makes the impression upon respectable citizens 
that this sentence is just and right ! The question I wish to submit to you is, 
what should I do to bring my case before the proper authorities ? If the 
sentence can be removed by a simple reversal, giving no reasons and going 
into no explanations, I have no objections. If a trial is necessary, then I 
ask, as a matter of justice, that it may be full and searching, and that I have 
a fair opportunity of thoroughly vindicating my character and conduct. 

On December 31, 1863, Judge Bates wrote from Washington 
directly to Dr. McPheeters : 

Governor Gamble transmitted to me (in his letter of December 27) your 
letter to him, of December 3d, which contains a lucid statement of the con- 
dition in which you suppose yourself to be left by the various military orders, 
copies of which accompanied your letter. 

Before the receipt of Governor Gamble's letter, I had received a petition 
in your behalf, addressed to the President by some twenty or more, among 
whom I recognize some of the worthiest men in St. Louis. That petition, 
with several letters of individuals which were sent with it, I laid before the 
President. He seemed much surprised to find that you were still laboring 
under any clerical or professional disabilities in consequence of those ill- 
advised military orders which, in all their personal and civil bearings, had 
been superseded long ago, and he answered Mr. O. D. Filley (who 
wrote one of the letters above referred to) in a manner which he supposed 
would end the question. Again I brought the matter to his notice by ex- 
hibiting the documents first mentioned in this letter. The President, in 
substance, answered, that it was always his wish and purpose to hold indi- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



I 99 



viduals responsible for their own acts, without any reference to the fact that 
they happened to be members or officers of particular Churches ; that the 
fact of being a member or pastor of a Church was no excuse for personal 
misdemeanors; but that he never intended to assume, or permit his 
subordinate officers to assume, any power to govern or control the Churches, 
or in any manner to determine who may and who may not preach or minister 
in them. 

You say that you are in the full fruition of your civil rights, and the Presi- 
dent considers you as free in the enjoyment of your ecclesiastical rights. 

I write this with the express permission of the President, and I presume 
to advise that you quietly resume the exercise of all the rights, duties and 
functions of your office, as if no interruption had occurred. 

It is time to give the famous letter of Mr. Lincoln, which, it 
now appears, was written and forwarded to Mr. Filley previous 
to that interview of Judge Bates with the President alluded to 
by the former in his communication to Dr. McPheeters, dated 
December 31. 

President Lincoln, on December 22, 1863, wrote directly to 
O. D. Filley : 

I have just looked over a petition, signed by some three dozen citizens of 
St. Louis, and the accompanying letters — one by yourself, one by a Mr. 
Nathan Ranney and one by a Mr. John D. Coalter, the whole relating to 
Rev. Dr. McPheeters. The petition prays, in the name of justice and 
mercy, that I will restore Dr. McPheeters to all his ecclesiastical rights. 
This gives no intimation as to what ecclesiastical rights are withheld. Your 
letter states that Provost-Marshal Dick, about a year ago, ordered the arrest 
of Dr. McPheeters, pastor of the Pine Street Church, prohibited him from 
officiating, and placed the management of the affairs of his Church out of 
the control of its chosen trustees ; and, near the close, you state that a 
certain course " would insure his release." Mr. Ranney's letter says: 
"Dr. Sam'l. McPheeters is enjoying all the rights of a civilian, but he can 
not preach the gospel." Mr. Coalter, in his letter, asks: "Is it not a 
strange illustration of the condition of things, that the question of who 
shall be allowed to preach in a Church in St. Louis shall be decided by the 
President of the United States ?" Now, all this sounds very strangely ; and 
withal, a little as if you gentlemen making the application do not understand 



200 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



the case alike— one affirming that the Dr. is enjoying all the rights of a 
civilian, and another pointing out to me what will secure his release. On 
the 2d of January last I wrote to General Curtis in relation to Mr. Dick's 
order upon Dr. McPheeters, and, as I suppose, the Dr. is enjoying all the 
rights of a civilian, I only quote that part of my letter which relates to the 
Church. It is as follows ; " But I must add that the United States Gov- 
ernment must not, as by this order, undertake to run the Churches. When 
an individual in the Chnrch or out of it becomes dangerous to the public 
interest, he must be checked, but the Churches, as such, must take care of 
themselves. It will not do for the United States to appoint trustees, super- 
visors or other agents for the Churches." This letter, going to General 
Curtis, then in command there, I supposed, of course, it was obeyed, 
especially as I heard no further complaint from Dr. McPheeters or his 
friends for nearly an entire year. I have never interfered, nor thought of 
interfering, as to who shall or shall not preach in any Church ; nor have I 
knowingly or believingly tolerated any one else to so interfere by my 
authority. If any one is so interfering, by color of my authority, I would 
like to have it specifically made known to me. If, after all, what is now 
sought, is to have me put Dr. McPheeters back over the heads of a majority 
of his own congregation, that, too, will be declined. I will not have control 
of any Church on any side. 

The letter that follows will illustrate still further how Dr. 
McPheeters contended for principle, and only principle, 
throughout. Writing from St. Louis, on 17th of February, 
1864, to Rev. A. Munson, he says : 

I thank you for your very kind letters, which pressing engagements have 
prevented me from answering until now. Mr. Lincoln repudiated the whole 
action of the military toward me : said he never sanctioned it nor allowed it 
to be done. This settles the matter, as far as the civil authorities were con- 
cerned. The matter has yet to go through the ecclesiastical courts. There 
is an appeal now pending before the Synod of Missouri. I hope you will 
be there to hear and help decide the matter. I should not be surprised if 
Strong sent up a memorial to the next General Assembly on the matter. 
But I do not believe he can do any thing there. He is becoming weaker 
and weaker. The prominent men who acted with him have taken pews in 
the New School Church; and one, who was his main stay, has begun a 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



201 



Mission Church, and will not, I think, give any more trouble, and will, 
probably, carry off some fifteen or twenty with him of the disaffected. I 
have contended throughout only for two principles — 

1. That a minister is not bound to answer political questions propounded 
to him by members of his Church. 

2. That the State has no right to control the worship of the Church. 

„ On both of these points I expect to stand. I have yielded no point, and 
intend to yield none, God being my help and strength. 

I greatly need the grace and wisdom that come from above that I may do 
right and be right. My brother, pray for me. 



202 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

THE NEWARK ASSEMBLY — SPEECH OF HON. W. T. WOOD. 

On December 22, 1863, all military disabilities were removed, 
and in January, 1864, Dr. McPheeters, at the earnest solicitation 
of a large majority of the Pine Street congregation, resumed 
labor again among the people of his charge. The reasons for 
this step are fully set forth in his speech before the Assembly in 
Newark, which the reader will find in a subsequent chapter. 
There was now a promise of quiet and usefulness. For twelve 
months and more the character of the Pastor had been held 
upon the rack, and yet not a witness could be found to testify 
to one single deed of unfaithfulness either to Christ or the Gov- 
ernment ; and in the present aspect of the case it did, indeed, 
appear improbable that malignity itself would persecute any 
longer. But at the spring meeting of St. Louis Presbytery, 
held at Kirkwood, April 9, a memorial, signed by Elder George 
P. Strong and eight others, asked Presbytery to prohibit Dr. 
McPheeters from preaching in Pine Street Church. 

Caesar, as we have seen, called for water and washed his 
hands ; but although the President positively decided not to 
" run the churches," it was not yet determined by ecclesiastical 
courts not to run the State. Accordingly the memorial of 
Strong and others was entertained. Against this action of the 
Presbytery two complaints were made to the Assembly. After 
so long a time, when the Assembly met in Newark, N. J., May, 
1864, Dr. McPheeters, in company with his Elder, Hon. Wm. 
T. Wood, stood up before the Ecclesiastical Court to sustain a 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 203 

complaint against the Presbytery of St. Louis. Judge Wood 
spoke first, and his speech was preceded by the following pre- 
liminary remarks : 

A very brief statement of the several steps in the history of this case is 
necessary to a clear understanding of the form in which it came before the 
General Assembly. From the 19th of December, 1862, to the 22d of Decem- 
ber, 1863, Dr. McPheeters, Pastor of Pine Street Presbyterian Church, St. 
Louis, Mo. , was prohibited by military authority from exercising the func- 
tions of his ministry in Missouri. During this time, to-wit : on the 15th of 
May, 1863, a pro-re-nata meeting of St. Louis Presbytery was called to 
dissolve the pastoral relation. The relation was dissolved by another pro- 
re-nata meeting, which convened the June following. Against this action of 
Presbytery complaint was made — an appeal taken to the Synod of Missouri 
by W. W. Greene, an Elder of Pine Street Church, representing that Church 
in Presbytery. Synod met in October of the same year, received the com- 
plaint and appeal, declared it to be in order, and for reasons given did not 
issue it, but put it on its docket to be tried at its next meeting, to be held in 
October, 1864. The military disability of Dr. McPheeters having been re- 
moved December 22, 1863, in January, 1864, he, assuming that the appeal 
which Synod had received, declared to be in order and docketed for trial, 
arrested the dissolution of the pastoral relation until the case was issued, 
and being invited by the Standing Committee of Pine Street Church to 
procure supplies, preached statedly for the congregation. 

At the spring meeting of Presbytery, held last April, a memorial, signed 
by nine members of Pine Street Church, was laid before that body, ask- 
ing Presbytery to prohibit Dr. McPheeters from preaching in Pine Street 
Church. This memorial Presbytery spread upon its records, and passed 
resolutions in accordance with the request of the memorialists. Against this 
action two complaints were made to the General Assembly — one by six of 
the seven Elders of Pine Street Church, which complaint was represented by 
Hon. Wm. T. Wood, one of the complainants, and the other by Dr. 
McPheeters. A memorial was also sent up to the Assembly, signed by a 
majority of the ministers and sessions of St. Louis Presbytery, upon the 
same subject. This memorial was placed with the other papers in the hands 
of the Judicial Committee, and was by them reported to the Assembly. 
And, while it was not read before the body, it was referred to and freely 
quoted in debate, and as it gives the view of the majority of St Louis Pres- 



204 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

bytery on the whole case, it is printed with the other documents. The 
minutes of the Presbytery here presented are those of the Judicial Com- 
mittee, and read before the Assembly, but other parts of the minutes were 
not only used in debate, but are referred to in the final action of the Assem- 
bly; and some things are also stated in the action of the Assembly which 
no where appear on the minutes. As the grounds of complaint are substan- 
tially stated in the arguments of Judge Wood and Dr. McPheeters, it has 
not been thought necessary to give them in full. The object of this publi- 
cation being to give the speeches of the complainants, the documents should, 
in strict propriety, be added as an appendix, but for the convenience of the 
reader they are here placed in the order he would naturally desire to read 
them. By the decision of the Moderator, Mr. Strong, although not a 
member of the Presbytery of St. Louis, nor appointed by them to defend 
their action, nor, as far as appeared, appointed by any one else, was admit- 
ted as one of the " original parties," apparently on the ground that he was 
one of the minority of Pine Street Church who presented the memorial to 
St. Louis Presbytery which gave rise to the action of the Presbytery about 
which complaint was made. 

EXTRACT FROM MINUTES OF PRESBYTERY READ BEFORE THE 

ASSEMBLY. 

KlRKWOOD, April 9, 1864. 

The Clerk received a memorial from members of Pine Street Church, 
complaining of the action of Dr. McPheeters and asking for relief, as follows : 
To Presbytery of St. Louis : 

Respected Brethren : The undersigned would respectfully represent, 
that within the last two or three months the Rev. Dr. S. B. McPheeters 
has resumed the duties of the pastoral office in Pine Street Church, notwith- 
standing his formal dismission from that office, at his own request, by the 
action of Presbytery in June last. Your memorialists are members of Pine 
Street Church, and heads of families connected with that Church, and are 
very desirous that such measures should be taken with reference to it as will 
tend to heal the divisions now existing and permit all its members to enjoy 
their accustomed privileges. There are now nearly a hundred members of 
that Church, beside others who have been attendants there, who have been 
constrained to withdraw their confidence from Dr. McPheeters in consequence 
of the course he has pursued upon the subject of the existing rebellion — who 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



205 



are unwilling to have him as their minister. They believe the Presbytery 
acted wisely and considered the true interest of the Church when it dissolved 
the pastoral relation between that Church and Dr. McPheeters, and that if 
Dr. McPheeters had submitted to the action of Presbytery and retired from 
all connection with Pine Street Church, instead of encouraging a revolu- 
tionary and contumacious spirit, by gathering around him a portion of that 
Church, and by persisting in attempting to fill the pastoral office after his 
regular dismission, there would at once have sprung up a better and more 
Christian spirit, and the great majority of both parties in the Church would 
now be worshiping together in comparative harmony and peace. They be- 
lieve that Dr. McPheeters' usefulness in that Church is at an end, and that 
whatever accessions may be made to it under his leadership will result more 
from a design to aid in a party triumph than from any desire to build up the 
Church of Christ, and that a blessing can not be expected upon the labors 
of a minister whose presence drives from the Church and from the com- 
munion table nearly a hundred members of the regular communicants. 

Your memorialists deny the right of Dr. McPheeters or any portion of 
Pine Street Church to insist that he only minister there, and all who are not 
satisfied with that arrangement shall leave the Church, after the Presbytery, 
upon a full and mature deliberation, has decided that the interest of that 
Church will be best promoted by a change of pastors. Wherefore your 
memorialists respectfully pray that such action may be taken in the premises 
as to compel Dr. McPheeters to respect the decision of Presbytery and 
retire from Pine Street Church, and that such other relief may be afforded 
as to your body may seem meet and proper. 

(Signed,) George P. Strong, Thomas Morrison, H. B. Graham, John S. 
Thompson, S. D. Mitchell, James M. Corbitt, John Ifinger, Richard 
Holmes, John Devlin. 

Elder George P. Strong, of Pine Street Church, being present in the 
house, was invited to address Presbytery on the subject. Elds. Edwards 
and King, members of the Standing Committee on Pine Street Church, 
being called upon, addressed Presbytery as to the efforts which had been 
made to reconcile the difficulties in that Church. 

The following was moved by the Rev. H. I. Coe : 

Resolved, That the memorial of a number of members of Pine Street 
Presbyterian Church be referred to the Standing Committee of Presbytery 



206 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



on the affairs of that Church, with instructions to report at a called or at 
the next regular meeting of Presbytery, as they deem expedient. 

Pending the discussion of the resolution, Rev. J. J. Porter moved the 
following substitute. The memorial of certain members of Pine Street 
Church having been presented, after discussion, it was resolved as follows : 

1. By action of Presbytery of June, 1863, the pastoral relation between 
Dr. McPheeters and Pine Street Church was dissolved, and Dr. McPheeters 
ceased to be the pastor of that Church, and ceased to have the right to ex- 
ercise discipline or perform the functions of the pastoral office in that Church. 

2. That inasmuch as this action was taken by Presbytery in the exercise 
of its power to ordain whatever pertains to the spiritual welfare of the 
Churches under their care, and its solemn judgment that the interests of 
Pine Street Church require that Dr. McPheeters shall cease to extrcise the 
functions of minister to that Church ; therefore, 

Resolved, That Presbytery learns with regret that Dr. McPheeters is still 
officiating as minister in that Church, whether by invitation of Session or at 
his own instance is not known to Presbytery ; but in either case they do 
hereby ordain and declare that, in the judgment of this Presbytery, the peace 
and harmony and spiritual interest of Pine Street Church, as well as a proper 
respect for the feelings of a large minority opposed to the ministrations of 
their former pastor, require that Dr. McPheeters shall cease all connection 
with that Church and no longer attempt to minister to that congregation. 

Passed, and the stated clerk was directed to furnish a copy of this action 
to Dr. McPheeters and to the Session of Pine Street Church. 

EXTRACT FROM THE MINUTES OF THE SYXOD OF MISSOURI, SESSION 
OCTOBER, 1863, READ BEFORE THE ASSEMBLY. 

The Judicial Committee made the following report : That * ' there has been 
placed in their hands an appeal and complaint to Synod against the action 
of the special meeting of the Presbytery of St. Louis, convened in the city 
of St. Louis, on the 22d of June, 1863, which closed its session on the 27th 
June, to dissolve the pastoral relations between Rev. S. B. McPheeters 
and the Pine Street Church, they find the said appeal and complaint in 
order, but inasmuch as persons interested in the case, and who desire to be 
present when the case is issued, are not able to be present at this time, they 
recommend that the case be referred to the next Synod." Accepted and 
adopted. . 



MEMOIR OF S. B. m'pHEETERS, D. D. 207 

Memorial of a Majority of the Ministers and Elders of St. Louis Pres- 
bytery to the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Churchy convened in 
Newark , N. J.y May, 1864. 

The undersigned, constituting a majority of the ministers and ruling 
Elders in the Presbytery of St. Louis, respectfully memorialize your ven- 
erable body touching the action of said Presbytery in relation to Rev. 
Samuel B. McPheeters, D. D., and the Pine Street Church. 

The anomaly thus exhibited — of a majority presenting a memorial' con- 
cerning the proceedings of those who, when assembled in an ecclesiastical 
court, form a minority of the members entitled to a seat in the body — will 
be subsequently explained. 

Your memorialists desire nothing more than to present a brief history of 
the case upon which they seek, from the General Assembly, an expression 
of opinion, feeling assured that a simple statement of facts will meet all the 
ends contemplated in laying this paper before the highest judicatory of our 
Church . 

The history, which we deem essential to a clear understanding 01 the 
troubles that have arisen among us, is compiled from the records of the 
inferior judicatories ; and only when those records are manifestly imperfect 
do we derive our narrative from other sources of information known to be 
entirely reliable. 

Your attention, then, is called, in the first place, to the proceedings of 
Presbytery, at a meeting held in St. Louis, on the 15th of May, 1863, for 
the purposes mentioned in the following minute : 

" A special meeting of the Presbytery of St. Louis being called by the 
Moderator, on the request ot James A. Paige, S. Pettigrew, J. J. Porter, 
(ministers) ; Wyllys King, J. C. Havens, C. Sage (Elders of the Union 
Church) ; and Geo. P. Strong (Elder of Pine Street Church), to be held 
on the 15th of May, at 8 o'clock, p. m., in the Union Church, St. Louis, 
to take measures to remove the grievances under which Pine Street Church 
has been laboring for some months past, and to dissolve the pastoral rela- 
tion between that Church and Rev. Samuel B. McPheeters, D. D., and, in 
general, to take such action as the interests of that Church may seem to 
require ; and, in view of the renewed attempt to overthrow the Government 
in Missouri, to take such action as will warn and dissuade the members of 
our various Churches from engaging in and encouraging the sin of rebellion 



208 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



against the Civil Government of the State and nation. Presbytery met 
accordingly," &c. 

Your memorialists ask the Assembly to notice the peculiar phraseology 
of the call upon which the Presbytery convened. It is not to dissolve the 
pastoral relation between Dr. McPheeters and the Pine Street Church — 
if the way be clear, or if the interests of the Church demand the dissolution 
— but it is "to dissolve the relation," thereby conclusively proving the fixed 
purpose and foregone conclusion of those who drew up the call to do that 
thing in any event. We, also, ask you to notice that there is not one word 
on record to indicate that even the minority in Pine Street Church, who 
opposed Dr. McPheeters, either requested or desired the Presbytery to 
convene for any such purpose. Suddenly and unexpectedly, and but a few 
days after the regular spring meeting of the Presbytery, when, as the records 
show, the affairs of Pine Street Church were under consideration, the Mod- 
erator issues a call for a pto-re-nata meeting, signed by three ministers, 
two of whom have no pastoral charge; by three ruling Elders, all belong- 
ing to one Church ; and by one ruling Elder of Pine Street Church ; and 
the object of that meeting, it is plainly stated, is to dissolve the pastoral 
relation between Dr. McPheeters and his people. 

Now, your memorialists assert, without fear of contradiction, that no 
reasons existed for the dissolution of the pastoral relation on the 15th of 
May which did not exist at the time of the regular meeting of Presbytery, 
but a little while before. But if the General Assembly will keep in mind 
that there was unusual excitement in the community (as, indeed, the call 
upon which the Presbytery met intimates), and that this excitement, 
naturally, prevented a large attendance of the members, the true cause 
of the hasty action of Presbytery will, possibly, be disclosed. Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters was forbidden, by military authority, to appear for his defense or 
for one word of explanation; any expression of sympathy with him, 
although based on purely ecclesiastical or conscientious grounds, was 
regarded with suspicion and attended by danger ; and hence, as the vote 
upon an important resolution shows, but sixteen out of nearly sixty minis- 
ters and ruling Elders were present to do what it was declared in the call 
they were determined to do — to-wit : dissolve the pastoral relation. 

For reasons which were stated to Presbytery at a subsequent meeting, 
but which were refused a place upon the records, Dr. McPheeters felt con- 
strained to put his resignation into the hands of Presbytery, and thereupon 
it was 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. B, 



209 



"Resolved, That Pine Street Church and congregation be cited to appear , 
by their commissioners, before Presbytery, on Wednesday, the 3d of June/ 
at 8 o'clock, p. m., in the Pine Street Church, to respond to the resignation 
of their pastor, Rev. S. B. McPheeters, D. D. ; and to this end they are 
hereby directed to meet on Wednesday evening, the 27th inst., to take 
action in the premises." 

In accordance with the foregoing order, a meeting of Pine Street Church 
was held on Wednesday evening, the 27th of May, 1863, and was moderated 
by Rev. James H. Brookes. After considerable discussion upon various 
motions, W. W. Greene, ruling Elder in Pine Street Church, offered the 
following resolution : 

"Resolved, That this meeting do not agree to, and protest against the 
dissolution of the existing relation with the Rev. Dr. Samuel B. McPheeters, 
as pastor of Pine Street Church, and that we request him to withdraw his 
resignation offered to St. Louis Presbytery." 

The ayes and noes being called, the vote, as the record shows, resulted 
as follows: Ninety-one (91) were in favor of Mr. Greene's resolution; 
fifty-six (56) were opposed. 

At this juncture, as the records both of Presbytery (see page 104) and of 
the Pine Street Church further show, a majority having left the house near 
the hour of midnight, and, upon the introduction, by Mr. Strong, of matters 
wholly foreign to the expressed object of the meeting, the minority there- 
upon proceeded to elect Mr. Strong as the commissioner to represent the 
Church in Presbytery, and instructed him to urge the dissolution of the 
pastoral relation, in the very face of the resolution just adopted by an over- 
whelming majority. 

The Presbytery met, according to adjournment, in Pine Street Church, June 
3, 1863, and Geoge P. Strong was recognized as the properly appointed Com- 
missioner of the Church. A question at once arose concerning the meaning 
of the phrase, "at their next meeting," in Chapter XVII, Form of Govern- 
ment, which says "Presbytery shall cite the congregation to appear, by their 
Commissioners, at their next meeting, to show cause, if any they have, why 
the Presbytery should not accept the resignation." It was held by some 
that an adjourned meeting is not "the next meeting" in the sense of the 
Book, and hence, on the evening of June 4, 1863, the following paper, 
offered by Rev. J. H. Brookes, was adopted : 

"In view of the fact that considerable doubt exists concerning the consti- 



210 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



tutional right of Presbytery, at its present session, to issue the matters con- 
nected with Pine Street Church, 

Resolved, That Presbytery, after approving their minutes, adjourn, in 
order that opportunity may be afforded for calling another pro-re-nata meet- 
ing of this body." 

Presbytery accordingly adjourned, and a call was immediately issued for a 
meeting to be held in the same place June 23, 1863. 

On the evening of June 22, 1863, a meeting of Pine Street Church and 
congregation was held, called by order of the Session of said Church, and 
Moderated by Rev. James H. Brookes. At this meeting the following reso- 
lution, offered by Hon. W. T. Wood, Ruling Elder in Pine Street Church, 
was adopted, as the records show (see page 106), by a large majority of the 
members of the Church : 

"Whereas, At a meeting on the 27th of May, 1863, at a late hour of 
the night, after a vote had been taken in full meeting of ninety-one (91) to 
fifty-six (56) against the resignation of Dr. S. B. McPheeters, Pastor of the 
Church, and against the dissolution of the pastoral relation, and after a 
majority of the members had left and gone home, as it appears by the pro- 
ceedings of the persons who remained, it was resolved that this meeting 
now appoint a commissioner to represent this Church in Presbytery, and 
that he be instructed to urge Presbytery to accept Dr. McPheeters' resigna- 
tion, and to dissolve the pastoral relation between him and Pine Street 
Church; and, 

"Whereas, The resolution was offered and passed without even a motion 
to reconsider the vote that had been taken and entered on the subject, in vio- 
lation of all rule and order, and against the known voice of the Church and 
congregation ; therefore, 

" Resolved, That said resolution does not express the voice and wishes of 
Pine Street Church and congregation ; and, further, 

"Resolved, That the true voice of the Church and congregation was 
expressed in the resolution adopted at that meeting, on motion of Captain 
Greene ; and unless George P. Strong, as the Commissioner from this con- 
gregation, can and will, in good faith, present and urge upon Presbytery the 
voice and wishes of the congregation as expressed in the resolution adopted 
on the motion of Captain Greene, on a fair vote of 91 to 56, he be requested 
to resign his trust as Commissioner." 

Presbytery met on the next evening, June 23, but, notwithstanding the 
earnest protest of this injured Church, Mr. George P. Strong was recog- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



211 



nized as its Commisioner, and was permitted, as the minutes show, to make 
two speeches against his Pastor, who was not permitted to appear in answer 
to his accuser. Nay, insult was added to injury, for we find in the records 
of Presbytery the following minutes: "Mr. Strong having concluded, it 
was moved that the request of Pine Street Church be granted, and the pas- 
toral relation dissolved." Now, Presbytery well knew that Pine Street 
Church had made no such request, unless, indeed, one Ruling Elder out of 
seven that constituted the Session, and fifty-six members out of one hundred 
and forty-seven, who were present, by some curious mode of reasoning, 
were reckoned as the Church. But the minute goes on to say: "Pending 
this motion, Rev. J. H. Brookes asked leave to read a paper from Rev. Dr. 
McPheeters. The leave was granted, and the paper was heard. Rev. Dr. 
McPheeters having asked leave to withdraw his resignation already put in 
the hands of Presbytery, and that the whole paper be spread on the records, 
it was, on motion of Elder A. G. Edwards, 

li Resolved, That Rev. Dr. McPheeters have leave to withdraw his paper 
just presented. 

"The motion to dissolve the pastoral relation recurring, . . . G. P. 
Strong, Esq., Commissioner from Pine Street Church, took the floor and 
pressed the dissolution of the pastoral relation between that Church and 

Rev. Dr. McPheeters. Mr. Strong having concluded, the 

previous question was now called for and carried. The main question, viz. : 
the dissolution of the pastoral relation, then being put, the ayes and noes 
were called for. The vote resulted as follows : 

"Ayes— Jos. F. Fenton, H. Blackwell, J. J. Porter, S. K. Snead, Thomas 
Cole, Joseph Marr, S. Pettigrew, J. A. Paige (Ministers); and Wyllys 
King, A. G. Edwards, Edward Ilsley (Elders). 

Noes— J. N. Gilbraith, J. H. Brookes, W. H. Parks, A. D. Madeira, 
H. F. Albright (Ministers); William Risley, W. W. Greene, Joseph Con- 
way and E. Jaccard (Elders)." 

Your memorialists ask the General Assembly to observe in this extra- 
ordinary proceeding on the part of Presbytery— first, that the plain letter 
of the law in Form of Government, Chapter XXII, which says, "the 
Presbytery shall cite the congregation to appear, by their commissioners, at 
their next meeting, to show cause, if any they have, why the Presbytery 
should not accept the resignation," was grossly violated. The Church did 
not appear by their commissioners, and were not, therefore, permitted, 
much as they desired it, to show cause why the resignation should not be 



212 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



accepted. Second, George P. Strong was allowed, not to represent, but 
totally to misrepresent the known wishes of the Church, and to disobey 
their positive order, which required him to resign his trust as commissioner, 
if he could not, "in good faith, present and urge upon Presbytery the voice 
and wishes of the congregation, as expressed in the resolution adopted on 
the motion of Captain Greene on a fair vote of ninety-one to fifty-six." 
Third, the resolution adopted by the Presbytery, and upon v* hich the final 
vote was taken, was "that the request of Pine Street Church be granted, 
and the pastoral relation dissolved;" although Presbytery knew that this 
resolution was directly contrary to the facts in the case and to the voice of 
the Church, as expressed in two meetings. Fourth, Dr. McPheeters, in 
accordance with the urgent request of his Church, asked leave to withdraw 
his resignation, also assigned reasons why he had felt constrained not to offer, 
but simply to put his resignation into the hands of Presbytery; but the 
paper which he presented was refused a place on the records, although 
Presbytery knew that this was the only mode left him of appearing before 
his brethren for one word of explanation or defense. Fifth, the whole of 
these remarkable proceedings, from their commencement to their evil con- 
summation, took place while Dr. McPheeters did not have the poor privi- 
lege accorded to the meanest of criminals to stand before the bar which 
virtually tried and condemned him ; and while, as soon after appeared, the 
strong hand of martial law was laid upon the exercise of his ministerial 
functions without the knowledge or consent of the highest authorities of the 
and. Sixth, in the adoption of the final resolution to dissolve the pastoral 
relation, out of the eight ministers who voted for it, but izvo have a pastoral 
charge ; and only eleven Ministers and Ruling Elders in all out of about 
sixty in full Presbytery, sundered a relation which had existed happily and 
prosperously for twelve years, and that, too, without allowing either the 
pastor or the commissioners of the Church to be heard. 

Your memorialists now ask the attention of your venerable body to the 
origin of these difficulties, and to the ground upon which the minority of 
the Church and the Presbytery have manifestly and confessedly proceeded 
throughout. 

In a report made to Presbytery June 30, 1863, by a committee "appointed 
to inquire fully into the condition of Pine Street Church," you will find the 
following language, which was received and adopted by Presbytery and 
spread upon their records, and which, therefore, was accepted as a state- 
ment of facts in the case : 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



213 



"At the request of your committee, the Ruling Elders of Pine Street 
Church came together last evening (Monday, June 29), and we held with 
them a full and free conference. Six Ruling Elders were present, embrac- 
ing all the members of the Session, with the exception of one, who was 
prevented from meeting with us by reason of advanced age and infirmity. 

"The conference was conducted with the design to remove all restraint 
from a candid expression of opinion, and your committee believe that in 
arriving at the views of the brethren who were before us we also arrived at 
the views of the great body of the Church, whose wishes they claimed, and 
no doubt truthfully, to represent. . . . The committee gathered from 
the conversation the following statement of facts, which we think it proper 
to lay before you, in order to aid the Presbytery in reaching a wise decision 
in the premises : 

" Until the return of Dr. McPheeters, the late pastor of the Church, 
from the General Assembly, which met in Columbus, Ohio, in May, 1862, 
Pine Street Church, to all appearances at least, was harmonious and happy. 
Soon after his return a letter was addressed to him by Mr. Strong and one 
or two others, requesting an expression of his opinion respecting the troubles 
now distracting our country. Dr. McPheeters declined to give the desired 
expression, and, after some further correspondence and amid increasing ex- 
citement in the Church, he was banished from the State by the military au- 
thorities, in the month of December, 1862. The order of banishment was 
subsequently so far modified as to permit him to remain in Missouri, but 
he was not allowed to exercise the functions of his ministerial office. In 
the meantime, two parties were formed in the Church, which continue at 
variance until this day." 

From the foregoing statement the General Assembly will perceive that in 
the supposed disloyalty of Dr. McPheeters we are to find the origin of the 
troubles which threaten to destroy one of our Churches and to disturb the 
tranquillity of all our congregations. It will not be asserted that any oppo- 
sition to him would have arisen in his Church if he had satisfied Mr. Strong 
in a public manner in regard to his loyalty. It will not be asserted that 
one of the eleven Ministers and Ruling Elders who voted for the dissolution 
of the pastoral relation would have so voted had he proclaimed his loyalty, 
according to their standard, in the pulpit or in the daily journals. The 
lengthy addresses of Mr. Strong in Presbytery were mainly occupied with 
the attempt to fasten on his pastor the charge of disloyalty. It was boldly 
asserted on the floor of Presbytery, by one of the oldest ministers, that he 



214 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



had come determined to vote for a dissolution of the pastoral relation because 
he believed Dr. McPheeters to be a disloyal man, and it was distinctly pro- 
claimed that loyalty was the great question before us, and, in effect, that at 
such a time exhortations to forbearance, charity and brotherly kindness 
were worthy only of scorn. Indeed, it will not be denied before your ven- 
erable body that the one ground upon which the entire proceedings of the 
minority of the Church and of the Presbytery have been based is the 
assumption or belief that Dr. McPheeters is not loyal to his Government. 

Now, in relation to these charges and insinuations, that have already 
worked so much mischief among us, your memorialists beg leave to remind 
the General Assembly, in the first place, that we live in a State which has 
been distracted by civil war, which is even now held within the rigorous 
grasp of martial law, and in which, therefore, the whisper of an unknown 
enemy may subject the private and retiring citizen to suspicion, to imprison- 
ment, and to banishment. 

In the second place, Dr. McPheeters has, over and over, declared, in 
private and also in the public prints, that his refusal to answer Mr. Strong's 
interrogatories was, and is due solely to a principle which he holds to be 
sacred — namely : that, as a minister of the gospel, he owes allegiance only 
to the Lord Christ, and hence that, as such> he can not, and will not, take 
part in civil strifes nor give expression to his opinions concerning purely 
secular questions. In December, 1862, he published " A Card," in which 
the following language is used : 

" Some of the members of my Church claim that, in virtue of the relation 
in which I stand to them, as a pastor, they have a right to demand, and 
they have demanded, my written opinion and personal opinion upon the 
civil and political questions which now agitate the nation. This claim of 
right I deny, and have felt bound, in duty and conscience, to resist. I did 
this deliberately, as a matter of principle " 

" Again, I resisted because the teachings and practice of my whole min- 
isterial life solemnly pledged me to resist. In all places and at all times I 
have opposed, to the full extent of my ability, the introduction of civil, 
secular and political questions into the house of God. As a pastor, and 
because I was a pastor, I have stood aloof from these things, even in my 
private relations." 

Now, whether this position is right or wrong, wise or foolish, your 
memorialists do not undertake to decide; they only insist that Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters solemnly declares the motive which has controlled his conduct has 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 215 

had no reference to either party engaged in the present struggle ; and hence 
it was exceedingly uncharitable in Presbytery to predicate their action upon 
the presumption that a man so well known in the community, and so uni- 
versally esteemed hitherto for his integrity and piety, had studiously 
concealed the true reasons which decided his course, and had been guilty of 
falsehood. 

In the third place, inasmuch as Presbytery practically adjudged Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters to be unworthy of his place as pastor of Pine Street Church, 
because of his supposed opinions touching great questions of State, and 
inasmuch as these supposed opinions constitute, in their judgment, an 
offense that renders him a proper subject for discipline, your memorialists 
ask the General Assembly to direct that Presbytery proceed regularly and 
constitutionally to table charges against him, and not to condemn him 
unheard. If he had been guilty of the grossest sins known in the catalogue 
of crimes, our noble Constitution requires that he have a fair and impartial 
hearing ; how much more so when he asserts that the real issue between 
him and his adversaries has been lost in the introduction of questions wholly 
irrelevant to the true merits of the case. 

In the fourth place, your memorialists would remind your venerable body 
that in Missouri it is exceedingly difficult to determine what is, and what is 
not loyalty, according to any human standard. The late Governor of the 
State — than whom a purer patriot never lived — was bitterly denounced as 
"disloyal," and the spotless beauty of his Christian character could not 
protect him, even in his grave, against cruel calumny and relentless detrac- 
tion. The late Commanding General of the Department of the Missouri 
was constantly declared to be "disloyal;" members of the Cabinet at 
Washington are proclaimed, every day among us, to be " disloyal," and 
the President of the United States himself is charged with being a "rebel 
sympathizer," who ought to have been hanged long ago. In a com- 
munity, therefore, where the standard of loyalty is ever shifting to meet the 
whims of uneasy political parties, and where multitudes even of professed 
Christians seem to have lost all reason and all religion, and to be led cap- 
tive by Satan at his will, it is no easy matter to determine whether a man is 
or is not loyal, according to the popular standard. But if a minister of 
Jesus Christ is to be adjudged by the divine standard revealed in the Sacred 
Scriptures, and if a court of Jesus Christ is bound to regard the divine 
standard alone in dealing with their brethren, then your memorialists unhesi- 
tatingly assert that Dr. McPheeters conforms to that standard, and that the 



2l6 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



action of the Presbytery was unjust and unfair in the extreme. He openly 
announces his recognized obligations to "be subject to the powers that be," 
and his enemies have been challenged in vain to point to one word or one act 
inconsistent with those obligations. If such word or act can be fairly 
pointed out, your memorialists hereby agree to withdraw all interest and 
effort in his behalf, and to consign him to his just deserts at the hands of a 
Presbytery which has shown every disposition to deal with him in the 
utmost severity. 

In the same " Card" to which we have already alluded, Dr. McPheeters 
expresses his views as follows : 

"I have no commission to uphold the State; much less have I any to 
seek its overthrow. For me to use, in any way or to any degree, my sacred 
office, or the influence which it gives me, to subvert the State, to breed dis- 
contents in it, to hinder its legitimate action, would, in my esteem, be 
sacrilege — a high and heaven-daring sin. As a citizen, I hold it to be a 
most important and indispensable part of my duty to God to obey law, to 
submit to the authorities, to pray for them, to render them the honor due 
their several stations, and to promote peace and quietness. These things, 
I solemnly declare, I have habitually aimed to do." 

Again, in a published correspondence with Mr. George P. Strong, he 
writes : 

"lam not ignorant of the fact that rumors have been circulated, and 
printed, too, charging me, directly or indirectly, with disloyalty. I know, 
also, it is a day of rumors, and falsehood, and detraction ; and the only 
notice I have felt called upon to take of these things has been to contradict 
them by the quiet tenor of my life. I have thought, yea, and I still think, 
that the ' rumors of disloyalty ' need not alarm one who, recognizing civil 
government as ' ordained of God,' has been ' subject' unto it, not only for 
wrath, but for conscience sake ; who, in obedience to the Divine command, 
has e submitted himself to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake ' ; 
who has ' rendered to all their dues — tribute to whom tribute is due, custom 
to whom custom, fear to whom fear, and honor to whom honor,' and who, 
in public and in private, has prayed for those who are in authority. All this 
I claim to have done, habitually and as a part of my duty to God; and, to 
bring this matter to an issue, let me say, there are civil, military and ecclesi- 
astical courts, and that I do now challenge any and all men — all makers, and 
spreaders, and indorsers of these rumors — to prove, before any of these 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



217 



tribunals, an act that I have done, or a word that I have said, that a good 
citizen has not a perfect right to do or say." 

Now, it is true, the foregoing declaration of principles did not seem to 
convince the Provost- Marshal that Dr. McPheeters was sufficiently loyal to 
be allowed the privilege of preaching the Gospel; but we ask the General 
Assembly to determine whether the declaration is, or is not, in strict accord- 
ance with the teachings of God's Word, and whether a Presbytery, as such> 
had a right to demand any further declaration. And yet the avowed reason 
(not upon the records, but upon the floor of Presbytery and in the commu- 
nity), for dissolving the pastoral relation between him and his Church is his 
disloyalty. It must be evident to your venerable body that, if such a 
declaration is not deemed satisfactory to a Church court, then the spiritual 
welfare of our people will depend upon the political views of those who con- 
stitute a majority in our Presbyteries, or who are permitted to meet by our 
military authorities. 

In the fifth place, it is asserted, upon the testimony which your memo- 
rialists are bound to receive as credible, that a larger number of loyal persons 
can be found among those who have sustained Dr. McPheeters throughout 
than can be found among his persecutors. It is also within the personal 
knowledge of many of your memorialists that his Session is composed of 
men who are not only loyal according to the scriptural standard, but Union 
men according to the political standard. Of nearly all of them have some 
of your memorialists heard, as outspoken, earnest and decided in their sup- 
port of the Government, and in their opposition to secession, from the very 
beginning of our troubles. How does it happen, then, that so many thor- 
ough Union men, who have associated daily and intimately with their pastor, 
can not discover that he has been in any wise faithless to his duties as a 
citizen, while it was reserved for a Presbytery, very few of whose members 
were at all familiar with him, to detect the taint of disloyalty and banish 
him from his Church ? 

In the sixth place, we ask the Assembly to note the following paper, vol- 
untarily signed by Dr. McPheeters, and laid before Major-General Rosecrans, 
commanding the Department of the Missouri : 

"We, the undersigned, hereby certify that we have each taken the oath 
of allegiance to the Provisional Government of Missouri and to the Govern- 
ment of the United States of America. 

"We also solemnly affirm that we will support the Constitution and laws 
thereof, and that we will not give aid and comfort to the enemies of either. 



2l8 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



We desire and purpose to conduct ourselves in all respects as good citizens, 
and to 'be subject to the powers that be,' in accordance with the teachings 
of God's Word. 

"As a matter of principle, however, and because we recognize the Head- 
ship of Jesus Christ alone in His Church, we can not allow any human au- 
thority to determine the qualifications of members who compose our Eccle- 
siastical Courts. 

"We, therefore, respectfully request the Commanding General to allow 
us, as loyal citizens, to assemble without let or hindrance, in order to trans- 
act business connected only with the Redeemer's Kingdom, and without 
requiring us to obey Order No. 61, that seems, at least, to interfere with the 
liberty and purity of the Church. 

"We assure you, General, that our request is not dictated by a captious 
or fault-finding spirit; and in proof of this assurance we shall not resist your 
authority, but quietly remain at home instead of attending the Ecclesiastical 
Court which is about to convene at Kirkwood, unless our request can be 
granted." 

To this communication no reply has yet been made, and, therefore, neither 
Dr. McPheeters nor the majority of your memorialists could conscientiously 
attend the recent meeting of Presbytery which convened on the 6th of April, 
1864. If, however, a refusal to attend under the surveillance of a Provost- 
Marshal (who was urged to be present and administer the oath at the open- 
ing of Presbytery by two persons who have been very active in their oppo- 
sition to Dr. McPheeters) ; if, we say, this can be brought against Dr. 
McPheeters, as a proof of disloyalty, then may it with equal propriety be 
alleged against some of our leading religious journals, and against several 
of the most distinguished Union men, both in Church and State. 

Previous to this recent meeting, however, the President of the United 
States, as soon as he learned of the order forbidding Dr. McPheeters to ex- 
ercise his ministerial office, promptly relieved him of the disability under 
which he labored from military interference, and expressed surprise at such 
interference, as involving disobedience to his own positive commands. 

It is not strange, therefore, that, in compliance with the earnest desire of 
his Session and Church, he resumed his pastoral labors. An appeal and 
complaint to Synod, found to be in order, as the records of Synod show, 
were then, and still are, pending; and inasmuch as the final effect of the 
action of Presbytery was stayed until the case could be heard and issued 
before the higher court, your memorialists can not see that he was wrong in 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 2ig 

re-entering the field to which God's providence was manifestly pointing 
him, and in which God's blessings manifestly accompanied him. The con- 
gregation, as some of your memorialists personally know, were large, atten- 
tive and solemn ; the Church was receiving considerable accessions, both by 
letter and upon profession of faith ; some of the minority appeared to be 
well contented with having their old pastor among them again, while others 
of them had withdrawn, or were preparing to withdraw, in peace ; and after 
a year of sore trial Pine Street Church had a brighter promise of usefulness 
than even before her afflictions. 

But this scene of tranquillity and of joy was destined to be of brief con 
tinuance. At the regular spring meeting of Presbytery, April 6, 1864, 
which was attended by only eighteen out of about sixty Ministers and Ruling 
Elders, because of a military order touching Ecclesiastical Assemblies, the 
following extraordinary action was taken upon a memorial signed by nine 
members of Pine Street Church, asking 1 1 that such action may be taken in 
the premises as to compel Dr. McPheeters to respect the decision of Pres- 
bytery and retire from Pine Street Church, and that such other relief may 
be afforded as to your body may seem meet and proper." 

"Elder George P. Strong, of Pine Street Church, being present in the 
house" (but not as a member of Presbytery), "was invited to address 
Presbytery on the subject. . . . 

"The following was moved by the Rev. H. I. Coe : 

' ' £ Resolved, That the memorial of a number of members of Pine Street 
Presbyterian Church be referred to the Standing Committee of Presbytery 
on the Affairs of the Church, with instructions to report at a called or at the 
next regular meeting of Presbytery, as they may deem expedient.' 

"Pending the discussion of this resolution, Rev. J. J. Porter moved the 
following substitute : 

" 'The memorial of certain members of Pine Street Church having been 
presented, after discussion it was resolved as follows : 

" ' 1. By action of Presbytery of June, 1863, the pastoral relation between 
Dr. McPheeters and Pine Street Church was dissolved, and Dr. McPhee- 
ters ceased to be the pastor of that Church and ceased to have the right to 
exercise discipline or perform the functions of the pastoral office in that 
Church. 

" *2. That, inasmuch as this action was taken by Presbytery, in the ex- 
ercise of its power to ordain whatever pertains to the spiritual welfare of the 
Churches under their care, and is its solemn judgment that the interests of 



220 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



Pine Street Church require that Dr. McPheeters shall cease to exercise the 
functions of minister to that Church; therefore, resolved,' " &c. 

Now, not to speak of the impropriety and irregularity exhibited in going 
back to explain the grounds of action in a meeting of Presbytery, composed 
in part of different members, your memorialists ask the Assembly to observe 
that the Presbytery shifts its position with regard to the reasons for dissolv- 
ing the pastoral relation. At the meeting in June, 1863, the only reason 
assigned was, because Pine Street Church had requested the dissolution ; 
but it seems that, upon reflection, this position was found to be altogether 
untenable, in the light of notorious facts ; and hence it now appears that 
the " action was taken by the Presbytery in the exercise of its power to 
ordain whatever pertains to the spiritual welfare of the Churches under 
their care." 

But while it is true that such is the general power conferred by the Con- 
stitution of the Church upon Presbytery, it is a power plainly modified and 
limited by specific regulations, and can be applied only in the mode and by 
the laws made and provided for its execution. Now, Chapter XVII, Form 
of Government, clearly states the manner in which a pastoral relation must 
be dissolved ; and, notwithstanding the general law by which Presbyteries 
4 'order whatever pertains to the spiritual welfare of the Churches under 
their care," they are bound to be governed by the special rules prescribed 
for their direction. 

The General Assembly, however, will perceive the difficulty under which 
Presbytery labored with respect to Dr. McPheeters and Pine Street Church. 
The requirements of the Book in this case were completely set aside, as 
neither he nor his congregation was heard, and Presbytery was compelled to 
fall back upon its general power as its last defense. But a more dangerous 
assumption of power, your memorialists believe, was never proclaimed; 
and unless promptly arrested in its exercise it must work incalculable mis- 
chief among our churches. If this bold declaration of power receives the 
sanction of our higher courts, it is manifest that the Presbytery of St. Louis, 
composed as it has been, to a great extent, for more than a year past, of 
persons who have no pastoral charge, and some of whom have but recently 
come into the Old School Church, may assemble at any time and dissolve 
any pastoral relation they may choose to dissolve, without even permitting 
the minister and his people to be heard. 

Your memorialists, therefore, pray your venerable body to withhold the 
sanction of your high authority from proceedings so unconstitutional, so un- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS. D. D. 



221 



generous and so unjust, and to order the immediate restoration of Dr. 
McPheeters to his pastoral charge. Such action we are sure will promote 
the peace and prosperity of our Churches, unite the affections of our people 
by still closer ties to the General Assembly, and save us from great and 
manifold troubles. 

That the Great Head of the Church, by the communications of His grace, 
and by the enlightening of His Holy Spirit, may guide you in your deliber- 
ations upon this and upon every other matter coming before you, is the 
earnest prayer of your memorialists. 

This memorial was signed by a majority of the Ministers and Sessiotzs 
of St. Lotcis Presbytery. 



SPEECH OF HON. WM. T. WOOD. 

Moderator — I trust that the importance of the judicial case, upon the 
discussion of which I am about to enter, will secure to me a patient hearing 
by the General Assembly. No more important judicial case has ever been 
before our Church courts, for the effect of the decision you are to render 
will not be confined to Pine Street Church in St. Louis, but its influence, 
for good or for evil, will extend to all our Churches throughout our whole 
country. I appreciate the responsibility of my position in appearing before 
you. I well remember the place and presence in which I speak. I know 
there has been much feeling excited by the facts of this case, but, sir, it shall 
be my aim to say nothing that will excite feeling, nothing that will offend 
or wound the feelings of any ; I will comment only on such facts as are 
necessary to a right understanding of the case. 

In giving my consent, on the urgent solicitations of my brother Elders, 
who have complained to the General Assembly, to represent them here, I 
did not do so in any vain expectation that I could, by any efforts of mine, 
in the slightest degree, influence the action of this learned and venerable 
body, composed of men whose lives have been devoted to just such studies 
as supplied them with just such practical knowledge as will eminently fit 
them to decide properly any and all questions involved in this unhappy con- 
troversy ; but I am here that my presence may be a living, tangible evidence 
that the members of Pine Street Church are in earnest in asserting their 
sacred claim of right to choose their own pastor and to bear testimony to 
their warm and devoted attachment to him. 



222 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



Moderator, if there be a fault that Dr. McPheeters is still a party to a 
contest in his Church, it is not a fault to be laid to his charge. I know how 
willingly he would have resigned his charge and withdrawn from a strife 
abhorent to every feeling of his nature. From the beginning, and at all 
times, he would have done so if he could have left the Church in more of 
peace and harmony, or if he could have had the consent of his people ; but 
unwilling to yield him up a victim to wrong, they have uniformly and stead- 
fastly protested against it, and, constrained by a sense of duty, he still 
remains in the position to which, in the Providence of God, he has been 
called, ready to endure trials and persecutions in any form they may be per- 
mitted to assume. 

Moderator, I know all about the troubles in Pine Street Church from the 
time they commenced until now, and, were it allowable, if I should give you 
their history, with necessary comments, it would require more of labor than 
I am willing to undergo, and consume more of the time of this General 
Assembly than can or ought to be devoted to a single case. The remarks 
which I shall submit shall be confined to the complaint made by members of 
the Session of the Church against the action of Presbytery at its recent 
session, whereby they excluded Dr. McPheeters from the pulpit of Pine 
Street Church and required him to cease all connection with the Church. 
In thus confining the remarks which I shall submit, I wish it distinctly 
understood that our whole case will not be told. A mass of matter con- 
taining ground of serious complaint against a minority in the Church will 
be wholly untouched. 

In the consideration of every case it is of the first importance that the 
issues involved be clearly understood and comprehended. Now, what are 
the issues in this case ? And this is a question more easily asked than 
answered. 

The action of the inferior court complained of is the exclusion of Dr. 
McPheeters from his pulpit, and requiring him to cease to exercise the 
function of a pastor or minister to his Church, and to cease all connection 
with the Church. To get at the issues we must go behind the action itself 
and examine the case made out for its foundation. 

The proceedings as first began against Dr. McPheeters were inaugurated 
by the call of a special meeting of Presbytery on the request of three Min- 
isters and four Elders, only one of the Ministers having a charge, three of 
the Elders being of Mr. Porter's Church, and of the whole number of 
Ministers and Elders, only one Elder a member of Pine Street Church. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



223 



This meeting was called, as expressed in the call, " to dissolve the pastoral 
relation between that (Pine Street) Church and Rev. Samuel B. McPheeters, 
D. D." It was not a call at the request of either pastor or people. 

This special meeting convened on the 15th May, 1863, and was composed 
of only sixteen out of nearly sixty Ministers and Elders in the Presbytery. 
It is but right that the General Assembly should know why so few were in 
attendance, and the cause will be found stated in the seventh clause of com- 
plaint. It was "a time of much excitement growing out of the rebellion, 
and when martial law was in full force and vigorously enforced ;" and on the 
day Presbytery met it was said on the streets that if Dr. McPheeters' friends 
attended Presbytery they would be arrested, and on this account a number 
went home who had come intending to participate in the proceedings — that 
two of them were actually arrested and imprisoned. It was under these 
circumstances, and on information deemed reliable, that his friends were in 
danger of prison, and himself and family of banishment, and with but little 
hope of serving his Church, as he was then excluded from the pulpit, that 
Dr. McPheeters consulted with friends and was constrained to place his 
resignation in the hands of Presbytery, and to advise his friends not to 
attend. 

This was done with the hope that the delay necessary, before final action, 
as it was supposed that could not be had until after the next meeting of 
Presbytery, would give time for reflection and returning reason. 

On receiving Dr. McPheeters' letter of resignation the nature of the pro- 
ceedings was at once changed, and Presbytery adopted an order under the 
seventeenth chapter of the Form of Government in these words. (See 
Memorial, page 4. ) To this seventeenth chapter, which contains but a 
single section, I ask the careful attention of the General Assembly. I will 
read it before I sit down. 

The members of the Church and congregation, in obedience to the cita- 
tion, held a meeting on the day appointed, and, after many obstacles and 
delays, succeeded in reaching a vote about midnight, when they resolved, 
by a vote of ninety-one to fifty-six, c ' That the meeting do not agree to, and 
protest against the dissolution of the existing relation with Rev. Samuel B. 
McPheeters as pastor of Pine Street Church, and that we request him to 
withdraw his resignation offered to St. Louis Presbytery." Immediately 
after this resolution was adopted, a member offered matter foreign to the 
object of the meeting, likely to consume time at that late hour of the night, 
and the majority not knowing the necessity of appointing a commissioner 



224 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



"to show cause why the Presbytery should not accept the resignation," left 
the house and went home, and then, immediately, although there was a 
motion to adopt it unanimously, the mover withdrew it, that a commissioner 
might be appointed by the minority, who remained to represent the Church 
in Presbytery, with instructions not "to show cause why Presbytery should 
not accept the resignation," but "to urge the dissolution of the pastoral 
relation," and this in violation of the seventeenth chapter, under which they 
were proceeding, in disregard of the vote and voice of the congregation, 
and against all rule, without a motion to reconsider the vote taken. 

Let it not be forgotten that this meeting of Presbytery of the 3d of June 
was a firo-re-7iata meeting, and in order to meet the requirements of the 
seventeenth chapter, and take their final action at a " next meeting ■," as 
required by Form of Government, Presbytery adjourned from the 3d to the 
23d of June, deciding that they could make the next meeting by adjourning 
to another day. On the 22d of June there was a meeting of the members 
of the Church, called at a regular meeting of the Session. At this meeting 
the members of the Church re-affirmed the resolution of Captain Greene, 
adopted at the former meeting, and required the commissioner thus appointed 
in the manner stated to resign, unless he could and would in good faith 
present and urge upon the Presbytery the true voice and wishes of the con- 
gregation, as expressed in the resolution adopted on motion of Captain 
Greene. (See proceedings, Memorial, page 5.) 

On the next day, the 23d June, the new pro-re-nata meeting of Presby- 
tery met, and the proceedings of the two meetings of the congregation, 
properly certified, showing the action I have stated, were laid before and 
read in open Presbytery. A paper from Dr. McPheeters, asking leave to 
withdraw his resignation placed in their hands, and stating the reasons which 
constrained him to place it in their hands, was read to Presbytery. This 
paper Presbytery refused to consider, refused to place it upon the records 
of Presbytery, and ordered that he have leave to withdraw it. The minutes 
of Presbytery show these entries: "Mr. Strong having concluded, it was 
moved that the request of the Pine Street Church be granted and the pastoral 
relation dissolved." " Pending this motion Rev. J. H. Brookes asked leave 
to read a paper from Rev. Dr. McPheeters . The leave was granted, and 
the paper was heard. Rev. Dr. McPheeters having asked leave to withdraw 
his resignation, already put in the hands of Presbytery, and that the whole 
paper be spread on the records, it was, on motion of Elder A. G, Edwards, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



"Resolved, That Rev. Dr. McPheeters have leave to withdraw his paper 
just pre sen ted. 

" The motion to dissolve the pastoral relation recurring, . . . G. F. 
Strong, Esq., Commissioner from Pine Street Church, took the floor and 
pressed the dissolution of the pastoral relation between that Church and 
Rev. Dr. McPheeters. Mr. Strong having concluded, &c. , the previous ques- 
tion was now called for and carried. The main question, viz. : the dissolution 
of the pastoral relation, then being put, the ayes and noes were called for. 
Ayes II, noes 9." 

The minutes of Presbytery show that Elder W. W. Greene was a member 
representing Pine Street Church. The minutes also show that Elder Greene 
gave notice in open Presbytery that he intended to complain to Synod 
against the action of Presbytery in dissolving the pastoral relation, and on 
due notice Elder Greene made out, in writing, his appeal and complaint to 
Synod in his own name, as a representative of the Session of Pine Street 
Church, and in the name of a majority of the congregation. 

The minutes of Synod are here, and show that this appeal and complaint 
was duly received and recognized, and decided to be in order and entered 
upon the docket of Synod for hearing, and is still there pending and undis- 
posed of. 

Now, it was while this appeal was thus pending before Synod, about 
January, 1864, that Dr. McPheeters and the Church and the public, for the 
first time, learned from Mr. Lincoln, the President of the United States, 
that he had, in January, 1 863, ordered Gen. Curtis, commanding the De- 
partment of the Missouri, to restore Dr. McPheeters to his rights and privi- 
leges as a minister, and that he (Mr. Lincoln) had supposed that this order 
had been obeyed. 

This letter of Mr. Lincoln was shown to Gen. Totten, then commanding 
the Department of the Missouri in the absence of Gen. Schofield, and with 
his knowledge Dr. McPheeters reoccupied his pulpit, in accordance with the 
wishes of six out of seven Elders of the Church, and a large majority of its 
members — all believing it was not only his right, but his duty to resume his 
labor as Pastor until final action could be had on the appeal to Synod. 

Thus matters stood until a day or two before the spring session of Pres- 
bytery, on the 6th of April, 1864. A few days before this Gen. Rosecrans, 
commanding the Department of the Missouri, had issued an order — No. 61, 
I believe — since generally known as "the Church order." By this order 
our Ecclesiastical Courts, before organizing, were required to ascertain who 

*5 



22 6 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

had and who had not taken a certain oath prescribed in the order as neces- 
sary to make the members eligible, and a Provost- Marshal was required to 
be present at the organization and see the order enforced; and a failure to 
comply on the part of the court, or any of its members, was made a military 
offense. 

A number of the members of Presbytery believed they could not carry 
out this order without ignoring the Headship of Jesus Christ in His Church, 
without surrendering the independence of the Church, and without vio- 
lating their own ordination vows to support and maintain the Church Con- 
stitution. I simply state the fact that they believed thus. I argue not the 
question whether they were right or wrong. Believing this, a number of 
them, among whom was Dr. McPheeters, joined in addressing a letter to 
Gen. Rosecrans, requesting him to permit them to attend Presbytery "with- 
out let or hindrance as loyal citizens," certifying that they had taken the oath 
of allegiance prescribed by our Convention. This letter was read to the 
General Assembly in the complaint of Dr. McPheeters. It was never an- 
swered. Others heard or knew of it who did not sign it. None who held 
the same views attended Presbytery; and thus was Presbytery left to be 
composed of only eighteen out of nearly sixty members. 

I ought, perhaps, further to add that it was spoken of and known that 
one of the members who did attend Presbytery, in company with an Elder, 
visited the Provost-Marshal-General and requested and urged him to send 
a Deputy Provost-Marshal to be present at the organization and sitting of 
Presbytery. 

It was under these circumstances that a memorial, signed by nine mem- 
bers of Pine Street Church, was hastily got up and presented to Presbytery 
on the second and last day of its session, charging Dr. McPheeters with con- 
duct revolutionary and contumacious, and asking "that such action may be 
taken in the premises as to compel him to respect the decision of Presbytery 
and retire from Pine Street Church, and that such other relief may be 
afforded as to your body may seem meet and proper." 

The minutes show that "Elder George P. Strong, of Pine Street Church, 
being present in the house (he was not there as a member), was invited to 
address Presbytery on the subject." 

Whereupon, it was resolved as follows : 

" i. By action of Presbytery of June, 1863, the pastoral relation between 
Dr. McPheeters and Pine Street Church was dissolved, and Dr. McPhee- 
ters ceased to be the pastor of that Church and ceased to have the right to 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



227 



exercise discipline or perform the functions of the pastoral office in that 
Church. 

" 2. That inasmuch as this action was taken by Presbytery, in the exer- 
cise of its power to ordain whatever pertains to the spiritual welfare of the 
Church, and under their care, and is its solemn judgment that the interest of 
Pine Street Church requires that Dr. McPheeters shall cease to exercise the 
functions of minister to that Church; therefore, resolved," etc. 

Against this action Dr. McPheeters and six of the seven members of the 
Session have complained to this Assembly. 

And a memorial from the majority of ministers and elders, in the bounds 
of Presbytery, protesting against the action complained of as unconstitu- 
tional, ungenerous and unjust, and asking the immediate restoration of Dr. 
McPheeters to his charge, has been sent to this body. 

I will call the attention of the General Assembly to one additional fact 
which shall close my statement of facts : that is this — that from the begin- 
ning of these prosecutions to the close of them Dr. McPheeters has never 
had the opportunity to appear in his own defense or vindication. Every 
proceeding has been ex parte, and all facts deemed necessary to sustain the 
action of Presbytery have been assumed, none have been proven. This I 
say not at random ; I ask the General Assembly to examine the record, and 
if anything can be proved having the character or semblance of proof, I have 
never been able to find it. And yet these proceedings have been of the 
gravest character. They have terminated in sundering the dearest and most 
sacred relation on earth, save only that of husband and wife, and of parent 
and child, in taking away the sacred right of a Presbyterian people to choose 
a pastor for themselves, and in casting suspicion on, and with it doing the 
most serious injury to a minister of the Church of Jesus Christ, than whom 
few have or ought to have a higher name for talent, integrity, piety and 
usefulness. More than this, they have brought affliction and sorrow upon 
a little flock of Christians bound by ties of strongest affection to their pas- 
tor, who, too, loved them in return — a flock that was a model flock before 
the fell spirit of discord was so wantonly enkindled among them. Mode- 
rator, this is a startling feature in this proceeding. 

The man charged with the highest crime or the lowest misdemeanor, or 
with debt, even one cent indebtedness, is entitled to notice, and has the 
right to be heard by himself and witnesses. Surely I am not mistaken in 
saying the noble Constitution of the Presbyterian Church, claimed, and justly 
claimed, as having furnished the model on which our own glorious civil Con- 



228 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



stitution was formed, does not and can not warrant ex parte proceedings 
involving questions affecting the most sacred rights and entailing evils and 
wrongs of such magnitude. 

And I ask the General Assembly, in this connection, to let it not be for- 
gotten, that while Dr. McPheeters has not been allowed the opportunity, 
or permitted on his own urgent request, to attend and defend himself 
against these proceedings, the prosecutor has always attended, and been 
allowed the largest liberty of a hearing. 

These are the prominent and substantial facts connected with the grounds 
of complaint assigned. It is still left for these grounds of complaint to 
indicate and develop the issues for hearing before the General Assembly. 

These grounds of complaint are numbered from I to 7. I will give them, 
in substantial abbreviation. 

1. That a majority of the members of the Presbytery did not, and could 
not, attend Presbytery at its meeting on 6th April, 1 864, the time of the 
action complained of, because of military orders in force, leaving the Pres- 
bytery, although a quorum, still a small minority, only eighteen out of nearly 
sixty. 

2. The action of Presbytery complained of was had and taken in the 
absence of Dr. McPheeters, and without notice to him, and without his 
having opportunity to be heard ; and being thus had and taken, concluded 
him guilty of grave fault, and expelled him from his pulpit. 

3. That Presbytery erred in deciding that the right of Dr. McPheeters 
to perform the functions of pastor or minister in Pine Street Church ceased 
from the time of their former action, notwithstanding the appeal made and 
pending from action to Synod. 

4. That the action of Presbytery complained of was based, in part, on 
ex parte verbal statements of George P. Strong and others, of which no 
record was kept, and of the nature and character of which neither Dr. 
McPheeters nor this General Assembly can have any knowledge. 

5. The action of Presbytery is violative of principles cherished by Pres- 
bytery, which in the congregation give the controlling power to the majority ; 
is unjust to the majority, disastrous to the Church and injurious to the 
interests of religion. 

6. Because the action of Presbytery complained of is based, in most part, 
on the act of Presbytery of 23d June, 1863, whereby Presbytery dissolved 
the pastoral relation, on the alleged ground that it was done on request of 
Pine Street Church ; whereas complainants allege that the records show that 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



229 



no such request was ever made, but, on the contrary, they made solemn pro- 
test against it, by vote of 91 to 56, and reaffirmed this vote at another con- 
gregational meeting, and instructed Mr. Strong, in good faith, to represent 
and urge their true voice. 

7. There was no emergency that did not exist and was not fully known 
to the Presbytery just closed before the first pro-7-e-nata meeting to dis- 
solve the pastoral relation. (See loth sec. 10th chap. Form of Gov.) 

Because the time was improper, such as to make it certain there would be 
but few members in attendance; because the proceedings were hastened 
through special, small and partial meetings of Presbytery ; and because the 
resignation of Dr. McPheeters, placed in the hands of Presbytery, was not 
so placed on his free choice, but was constrained by the pressure of sur- 
rounding circumstances. 

These make up the grounds of complaint ; and having already stated the 
facts substantially, the question again recurs, What are the questions and 
issues properly and legitimately before the General Assembly for their 
decision ? I state the questions and issues thus : 

1. Is it true that a majority of the members of Presbytery did not, and 
could not, attend by reason of military orders ? And if so, how does this 
fact affect the validity or propriety of the action of Presbytery complained of ? 

2. Is it true that the action of Presbytery was had and taken in the 
absence of Dr. McPheeters, and without notice, and without his having 
opportunity to be heard ? and does it conclude him guilty of grave fault? 
and how do these facts affect the propriety of the proceedings ? 

3. Is the decision of Presbytery right, that the appeal to Synod did not 
suspend proceedings, and leave Dr. McPheeters the right to perform min- 
isterial functions in his Church ? 

4. Is it true that Presbytery, in part, based its action on ex parte state- 
ments of George P. Strong and others, made verbally, and not kept on 
record? If so, is this an irregularity affecting the propriety of the pro- 
ceedings ? 

5. Was the action of Presbytery in disregard of the voice and rights of 
the majority of the congregation ? Was it injurious to Pine Street Church 
and to the interests of religion ? 

6. Is it true that Presbytery dissolved the pastoral relation on the ground 
that the dissolution was requested by Pine Street Church ? Did Pine Street 
Church request the dissolution ? Did the congregation object to and pro- 
test against the dissolution ? Did Presbytery receive Mr. Strong as com- 



230 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



missioner to urge the dissolution against the known instructions of the 
congregation? Ought not Presbytery, under the circumstances, to have 
delayed action until, through a commissioner, they could hear and know 
the reasons of the congregation "why the resignation ought not to be 
accepted?" Proceeding without such hearing, the congregation unrepre- 
sented, are not the acts of Presbytery coram non judice and void ? 

7. Was the pro-7'e-nata meeting of Presbytery called on account of any 
"emergency" or ' ' important occurrences " unknown at their last meeting ? 
Was the time improper, on account of unusual excitement and the prevalence 
of martial law preventing the attendance of members ? Were the proceed- 
ings unnecessarily hastened through special, small and partial meetings ? 
Was the resignation of Dr. McPheeters placed in the hands of Presbytery 
freely and of his voluntary choice, or was that act constrained by the pressure 
of circumstances ? 

Is a pro-re-nata meeting (a ' t next meeting") within the meaning of the 
XVIIth Chapter? 

Now, Moderator, I have gone through a statement of the facts, and of 
the grounds of complaint, and have fairly and fully stated every question 
and issue properly and legitimately involved in the case. I doubt not that 
many who may have given me their attention are suprised that another issue 
is not also involved in this case — namely, an issue involving the question of 
the loyalty and good faith of Dr. McPheeters to the Civil Government. 
But, sir, there is no such issue in the case — never has been. No such 
charge has ever been tabled against him. He has never been called upon 
to plead to such a charge. No evidence has ever been offered, or pretended 
to be offered, of his disloyalty. He has never been afforded the opportunity 
to meet such an accusation by evidence before any tribunal, civil, military or 
ecclesiastical. It is true, the public has seen and heard, in speeches and 
publications, insinuations and inuendoes; and the local Provost-Marshal in 
St. Louis, without the form of charge, or trial, or hearing, perhaps on 
secret information furnished by some of the loving friends of Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters, assumed him to be disloyal. No, sir; no such charge has ever 
been tabled against him or presented in a place or form to admit of his 
defense. And neither the Session nor members of his Church have ever 
adhered to him, or sustained him because of disloyalty or Southern symp- 
athy, as has been slanderously insinuated. 

I ask the General Assembly to hear Dr. McPheeters' own language on 
this subject. I read them as they are given in the memorial of a majority 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 231 

of the Ministers and Elders of St. Louis Presbytery to trie Assembly. 
(The declaration of Dr. McPheeters, given in Memorial, pages 7 and 8, 
was here read. ) You see here how he acknowledges and asserts his true 
and just allegiance to the Government. You have heard that he voluntarily 
subscribed and took a solemn oath of allegiance, invoking the judgment of 
his God on his failure faithfully to keep and observe it. Whatever may be 
the faults or sins of Dr. McPheeters, hypocrisy is not one of them ; bad 
faith and falsehood are not of them. You may confide in his word — you 
may rely upon his oath. I have said this much on the subject, not because 
it is a fact to be passed on in the issues of this case, but to remove any 
erroneous impressions that may have been made, and any prejudices engen- 
dered by rumors, or insinuations, or unproved charges, whether made 
publicly or privately. 

Some may ask themselves why Dr. McPheeters has left this point with- 
out evidence. Why has he not introduced witnesses and proved his loyalty 
to the Government ? Now, to such I say, don't forget that Dr. McPheeters 
has had no opportunity to be heard or give any evidence in this case. And 
don't forget that if he had even been present, resisting the action of Pres- 
bytery, that, as there was no charge of disloyalty, it was not competent for 
him to offer evidence on that point, and no court could have heard it. And 
I now say, that to offer such a ground here for sustaining the action of the 
Presbytery would be a mockery of justice and an insult to the understand- 
ing and justice of the judges of this high court of the Church and a 
violation of the plainest provisions of our Book of Discipline. Chapter 
II, Sec. 5. — "If any person shall spread the knowledge of an offense, unless 
so far as shall be unavoidable in prosecuting it before the proper judicatory, 
or in the due performance of some other indispensable duty, he shall be 
liable to censure as a slanderer of his brethren." 

I will now return to the true issues in the case, and dispose of them as 
briefly as possible. And here, again, let me remind the General Assembly 
that the proceeding entertained and prosecuted before Presbytery was 
under the single and only section of the seventeenth chapter of Form of 
Government. I will read that section : 

" Chapter XVII. — Of resigning a pastoral charge. — When any minister 
shall labor under such grievances in his congregation as that he shall desire 
leave to resign his pastoral charge, the Presbytery shall cite the congrega- 
tion to appear, by their Commissioners, at their next meeting, to show 
cause, if any they have, why the Presbytery should not accept the resigna- 



-232 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

tion. If the congregation fail to appear, or if their reasons for retaining 
their pastor be deemed insufficient, he shall have leave granted to resign his 
pastoral charge, of which due record shall be made ; and that Church shall 
be held to be vacant until supplied again with another minister; and if any 
congregation shall desire to be released from their pastor, a similar process, 
mutatis mutandis, shall be observed." 

This proceeding was not on the application of the congregation to be 
released from their pastor, but it was on the resignation of the pastor placed 
in the hands of Presbytery. It is not required that the pastor desiring to 
resign shall assign any reason for his resignation, but only and simply that 
he shall desire leave to resign. In order that leave may be granted, it is not 
required that the pastor be guilty of any fault, nor is it necessary that his 
people shall be at fault. The leave will not be granted merely because the 
pastor wills and desires it ; the people of his charge are to be consulted, and 
it is their constitutio7ial right, under this Chapter, to be heard in their 
reasons "why the resignatioii should not be accepted." There is no au- 
thority for the congregation to send Commissioners to urge acceptance of 
the resignation and a dissolution of the pastoral relation. They need only 
il fail to appear" \i they do not oppose the resignation, and leave will be 
quietly granted. And thus the peace and repose of the Church is preserved, 
without crimination or recrimination, and the end both parties desire fully 
accomplished. It is only when the congregation ' ' desires to be released 
from their pastor," and are opposed by their pastor, that it is proper for the 
congregation to send Commissioners to urge the dissolution. By a fiction 
in this case the minority was considered the majority. 

But my object in calling attention to this chapter and the proceedings 
under it at this stage of my remarks, is to show, as this chapter in terms 
too clear to be disputed does show, that Dr. McPheeters having offered 
his resignation when the congregation was cited to appear, as they were by 
Presbytery, there was no room or chance or authority for an issue or con- 
troversy as between him and his opposers, but only between him and his 
friends in the congregation who desired to retain him as pastor and opposed 
his resignation. They only could make an issue with him, and only then, 
when a majority of the congregation, they had the right to notice and cita- 
tion, the right in public meeting of the congregation to resolve and protest 
against the acceptance of the resignation, the right to send Commissioners 
to Presbytery to urge " their reasons for retaining their pastor." All this 
is too clear to be disputed, and yet we have the strange anomaly in this case 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



233 



of a resignation by the pastor, of a denial and ejection of a majority of the 
congregation from their right to be heard "why the resignation should not 
be accepted,'' and the reception and hearing of a Commissioner from the 
minority to urge acceptance of the resignation and a dissolution of the pas- 
toral relation ; and, strangest of all, an entry on the solemn and sacred 
records of Presbytery, a High Court of Jesus Christ, "that the request of 
Pine Street Church be granted and the pastoral relation dissolved," when no 
such request had ever been made ; on the contrary, a solemn protest against it. 

And another entry, not less strange, at another and recent meeting of 
Presbytery, giving as a ground for dissolving the pastoral relation, not the 
ground stated of record by the Presbytery which ordered the dissolution, 
to-wit : " the request of Pi7te Street C/uirch," but in these words : " That 
inasmuch as this actioii was taken by Presbytery in the exercise of its power 
to ordain whatever pertains to the spiritual welfare of the Churches under 
their care '," &c. Had this been so, a proceeding essentially different from 
the one adopted in this case would have been necessary. Moderator, we 
must observe and adhere to proper forms and modes of proceeding, if we 
would avoid confusion, protect the rights of parties, and insure the ends of 
justice. 

I will come back to the specific grounds of complaint, as alleged. 

I. Is it true that a majority of the members of Presbytery did not and 
could not attend by reason of military orders ? And if so, how does this 
fact affect the validity or propriety of the action of Presbytery ? 

The minutes of Presbytery show that only eighteen members were in 
attendance, and it has appeared from other papers before the General As- 
sembly that the whole number is nearly sixty. Then it is clear that only a 
small minority was in attendance. Why was it that a large majority were 
absent ? The General Assembly has the answer to this question given in 
the memorial in the hands of the General Assembly, from members com- 
posing that majority. 

Speaking of the letter addressed to Gen. Rosecrans on the subject of his 
Church order already alluded to, they say: "To this communication no 
reply has yet been made, and, therefore, neither Dr. McPheeters nor the 
majority of your memorialists could conscientiously attend the recent meeting 
of Presbytery which convened on the 6th of April, 1864. Then it is clear 
the majority did not attend, and that they did not attend because of this 
military order. 

Now, whether the conscientious scruples of these brethren were well 



234 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



grounded I will not argue. I defer to the superior learning and knowledge 
of the fathers in this General Assembly. 

It suffices for me that they abstained from attendance out of respect for 
the military authorities of the Government, to whose order they believed 
they could not conform without a violation of their ordination vows, and 
without admitting a power outside of the Church to fix the qualifications and 
eligibility of the members of the Church Courts. I ought to add that there 
w T as, with many who did not attend Presbytery, the greatest anxiety to be 
present, as is manifest to the General Assembly from the letter addressed to 
Gen. Rosecrans. Letters were addressed to learned ministers of the Church, 
where they were free from the disturbed condition of things prevalent in 
Missouri, for their opinions and advice, and their opinions and advice con- 
curred with the views of the majority. The leading journals of the Church 
concurred in the same view. 

Now, I respectfully ask the General Assembly if this was a proper time 
for a small minority within the bounds of Presbytery, knowing the con- 
strained and unwilling absence of the majority, to invade the quiet and 
repose of a Church under its care, and on the request of only nine members 
of that Church, and without notice or warning to the remaining members or 
pastor, suddenly and violently, on any pretext, separate pastor and people, 
and, more than this, require the pastor to cease all connection with the 
Church. 

Nay, I ask if such an act, under such circumstances, can have any validity ? 
The parties interested in the action of Presbytery, the pastor and his people, 
had a right to the protection which the Presbytery, under free and full 
attendance, could give them. But a time is seized upon by the nine 
memorialists who sought the expulsion of Dr. McPheeters from his pulpit, 
in his absence, without the knowledge of the people, and when the majority 
that could, and as we know from their memorial would, have been their 
shield and protection, was prevented from attendance. 

The second ground of complaint is, that the action of Presbytery, which 
concluded Dr. McPheeters guilty of grave fault, w r as had and taken without 
notice and without his having opportunity to be heard. 

This is proved by the minutes and proceedings of Presbytery. I have 
already alluded to this ground of objection, and will give it but brief notice. 
The action of Presbytery was based on a charge against him of contumacy 
and defiance of the authority of his Presbytery. This is a grave charge 
against a minister, and against which he surely has the constitutional right 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



235 



to be heard. The bare statement of the proposition is enough to command 
the assent of every minister in this Assembly. 

But I will call the attention of the General Assembly to the nature of the 
action and decision of Presbytery. 

The action of Presbytery was induced by a memorial of nine members of 
Presbytery, which was read before this General Assembly, charging Dr. 
McPheeters with conduct "revolutionary and contumacious;" in other 
words, with revolt and contumacy, for the phraseology of the charge is only 
matter of taste. The charge is none the less a substantial charge. That 
Presbytery based their action on this memorial and charge is shown conclu- 
sively by these considerations : 1. It is recorded and spread on the minutes 
immediately preceding the orders and entries complained of, and could have 
been admitted there only as evidence ; that it was indorsed by Presbytery 
to exhibit of record the facts and grounds of the decision and action of 
Presbytery. 2. If Presbytery had intended merely to enforce their former 
action, which extended only to the dissolution of the pastoral relation, their 
action would have been limited to the pastoral relation. But it was not thus 
limited. Dr. McPheeters was required "to cease the exercise of the 
functions, not of pastor only, but of a minister of his Church; and, more than 
this, he was required to cease all connection with his Church. Under the 
first action appealed from to Synod, the mere dissolution of the pastoral 
relation, even if there had been no appeal, the Church had the right to call 
on him, as occasion might require, to preach a sermon in their pulpit — had 
the right to retain him as a supply; but this action complained of to this 
General Assembly drives him from the pulpit, both as minister and pastor, 
and locks the doors of the Church against his attendance even as a regular 
worshiper. Surely the merest tyro in ecclesiastical courts who sat in Pres- 
bytery could not fail to know that to warrant and sustain such action the 
tabling of charges and citation and an orderly hearing were necessary, and 
was the right of the accused. Look at this proceeding in the light of the 
provisions of our Book of Discipline : 

"Great caution ought to be exercised in receiving accusations from any 
person who is known to indulge a malignant spirit toward the accused ; 
who is not of good character ; who is himself under censure or process ; 
who is deeply interested, in any respect, in the conviction of the accused ; or 
ivho is known to be litigious, rash or highly imprudent. 

"When a judicatory enters on the consideration of a crime or crimes 
alleged, no more shall be done at the first meeting, unless by consent of 



236 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M PHEETERS, D. D. 



parties, than to give the accused a copy of each, charged with the names of 
the witnesses to support it, and to cite all concerned to appear at the next 
meeting of the judicatory to have the matter fully heard and decided. 

" The trial shall be fair a7id impartial, the witnesses shall be examined 
in the presence of the accused ; or, at least, after he shall have received 
due citatio7i to attend, and he shall be permitted to ask any questions tending 
to his own exculpation." 

1 6 Judicatories, before proceeding to trial, ought to ascertain that their 
citations have been duly served on the persons for whom they were intended, 
and especially before they proceed to ulti??iate measures for contumacy. 
Book Discipline, Chap. 4, Sections 4, 5, 14, 15. All these provisions have 
been disregarded, and the very offense singled out as one never to be pro- 
ceeded against but on citation, to-wit, "contumacy," is the offense charged 
in the memorial and the items on the minutes, as the ground and basis of 
the action of Presbytery. 

The third ground of complaint is, that Presbytery erred in deciding, as 
they substantially did decide, that the appeal to Synod did not suspend 
proceedings and leave Dr. McPheeters the right to perform ministerial 
functions in his Church. 

I ask the careful attention of the General Assembly to this ground of 
complaint, for, without intending to derogate from the importance of other 
issues involved, this issue is vital ; for if there was an appeal from Presby- 
tery to Synod pending at the time the action complained of was had, that 
fact ends all question. Now, what are the facts before the General As- 
sembly as to whether there was such an appeal. Our complaint alleges 
that such an appeal was made, existed, and still exists ; alleges that notice and 
reasons were in due time and properly given, and the appeal is made part 
of the complaint. The written notice, with reasons, was here present, 
ready to be used before the General Assembly, and both parties offered to 
hear it read. But the reading was objected to, and it was not read. But 
the minutes of Synod were read. They show that the appeal and complaint 
was, and is duly pending before Synod ; that the appeal and complaint was 
decided by Synod to be in order, was docketed for hearing, and continued, 
for specified reasons, until the fall term of Synod, 1864. And these minutes 
have been approved by this General Assembly at its present Session ; and 
this being all that is before the General Assembly, is conclusive of the 
existence and pendency of the appeal. And, if we are confined to what is 
before the General Assembly, there is no room for argument ; this ground 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



237 



must be sustained. But I do not seek to avail myself of what may be 
regarded by some a technicality. I will proceed to notice this ground of 
complaint on the facts as they would have appeared if the notice and reasons 
had been read. 

On this point I suppose all will concede that if there was an appeal, the 
necessary operation of the appeal was to suspend proceedings, until it 
should be heard before Synod. If any doubt, I refer them to Book of 
Discipline, Chap, vii, 3d Sec. § 15. It is important, then, to observe with 
care, and see if there was an appeal. The Book of Discipline provides that 
' 'Every appellant is bound to give notice of his intention to appeal, and also 
to lay the reasons thereof, in writing, before the judicatory appealed from, 
either before its rising or within ten days thereafter. If this notice, or 
these reasons, be not given to the judicatory while in session, they shall be 
lodged with the Moderator." The notice required is the notice of the 
reasons of the appeal. See Assembly's Digest, case of Pew Owners of 
First Church in Troy, pp. 149-50. Without the reasons, there is no valid 
notice. This notice, and it must be in writing, may be given before the 
rising of the judicatory or it must be lodged with the Moderator within ten 
days. This writing must show for itself, and is what it purports to be, an 
appeal or complaint, or both, according to its purport, subject of course to 
a power in the higher Court to determine its character. And until that 
character is decided and determined it stands, and must stand, for what it 
purports to be. Now, in this case, Elder Greene, representing Pine Street 
Church in the Presbytery, when the decision was made verbally announced 
his purpose to complain to Synod, as appears from the minutes. The 
announcement, in point of fact, was, that he intended to appeal, complain 
or protest. This was no notice, within the meaning of the Book of Dis- 
cipline, was not intended to be, for it was not in writing nor did it give 
reasons. 

But after the rising of Presbytery, and within ten days, as required, he, 
as the Elder from Pine Street Church, and in the name of the majority of 
the Church, lodged his notice of an appeal and complaint, with reasons and 
grounds, with the Moderator. Whether it was an appeal or complaint, or 
both, must be first determined by the paper itself ; and in express terms it 
is an M appeal and complaint " as representative of the Session of the Church, 
and in the name of the majority of the Church. He claims that he has a 
right to appeal in the circumstances of this case. If that right be disputed, 
the question is for the decision of Synod. Who else shall decide it ? for the 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



most important consequences would result from leaving the power any where 
else. His appeal was, in due time, carried to Synod, and by Synod received, 
and on the minutes recognized as an appeal — I may say decided to be an 
appeal — docketed accordingly, and is there pending for trial, and was so 
pending at the time of the action complained of by Presbytery. I respect- 
fully insist that whatever may be the opinion of members of this General 
Assembly as to whether there was the right of appeal, that Synod having 
received, declared it in order as an appeal, entered and docketed it as an 
appeal, Dr. McPheeters and the Church were not only authorized, but 
bound to treat and regard it as an appeal, and to conform their action 
accordingly ; and Presbytery being the inferior tribunal, was in like manner 
bound. 

But I respectfully submit, Moderator, that there was the right of appeal 
in this case — that appeals will lie in questions in regard "to the creation 
and dissolution of the pastoral relation." (See Assembly Dig., page 142.) 
I admit that the right of appeal is continued to the parties. Who are the 
parties in this case ? Clearly Dr. McPheeters, on the one hand, and his 
Church and congregation on the other. For a moment, let us recall the 
facts. The congregation, when cited to meet and respond to the proposed 
resignation of the pastor, did meet, and, by an overwhelming majority, 
voted and protested against the resignation ; but, under mistake, apparent 
from the proceedings, left and went home without appointing Commissioners 
to Presbytery to give their reasons. The members who remained then 
appointed Mr. Strong — not to show cause against accepting the resignation, 
but, in violation of the Constitution, to urge the acceptance. The congre- 
gation, at another meeting, reaffirmed their former resolution and protest, 
and instructed Mr. Strong, if he could not, in good faith, truly represent 
the wishes of the congregation, to resign the appointment given him. He 
did not resign, but appeared before Presbytery and urged the case against 
the congregation. 

Now, there is no provision making it the duty of the Commissioner to do 
more than to give the reasons of the congregation why the resignation ought 
not to be accepted; and yet I do not doubt the right of the Commissioner 
to take the appeal, in the name of the congregation, would be allowed and 
recognized. But here is a case where the Commissioner was against his 
congregation — had not, in fact, been selected and sent by them. Is the con- 
gregation, therefore, to be deprived of the right of appeal ? It is clear they 
have the right of appeal : there is no provision as to who shall make it for 

/ 1 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



2 39 



them ; their numbers prevent them from making it in person. What valid 
reason can be shown why an Elder of their own Church, elected by them- 
selves, emphatically their representative, and, at the same time, one of 
themselves, may not, in their own name and his own, make the appeal? 
The fact that a Commissioner would be allowed to do so is no reason why 
their Elder, and, at the same time, a member of Presbytery, may not do 
so. If he can not, in this case there was a clear, and important, and sacred 
right, and no means of enforcing it. To deny this right in this case will 
be to permit a minority to take advantage of its own wrong by preventing 
an appeal. Moderator, let such a construction be given to our Constitution 
and standards as will protect our Churches and people in their acknowledged 
rights, and defeat injustice and wrong in whatever forms they may be 
developed. 

The people having the clear right of appeal, with their case sent up for 
revision in the higher court, let no unfair technicality deprive them of their 
pastor until final decision may be against them. 

The fourth ground of complaint is, that Presbytery, in part, based its 
action on ex-parte statements of George P. Strong and others, made ver- 
bally and not kept of record. 

On this head I have but a single remark to make. I have had long 
experience in the Courts ; have not been an inattentive observer. Such a 
practice would not, for a moment, be tolerated in Civil Courts ; and I do 
not hesitate to say, that if this practice is allowed and tolerated in Church 
Courts, and men having their feelings deeply enlisted and anxious for a 
certain result are permitted in this way in the absence of adverse parties 
to make statements and speeches to our Courts, great injustice will often be 
done. This was certainly an irregularity — by itself, perhaps, not fatal to the 
action of Presbytery, but added to other things, strengthens the grounds 
of reversal. 

The fifth ground is, that the action of Presbytery was in disregard of the 
voice and rights of the majority of the congregation; was injurious to Pine 
Street Church and to the interests of religion. 

This ground of complaint is of great practical importance, and its decision 
will materially affect the peace and interests of all our Churches ; for there is 
no Church, or at least but few Churches, which, in respect to the pastor, 
have not a majority and a minority — sometimes larger, sometimes smaller. 
And if the decision of this General Assembly shall be such as to encourage 
a minority to persevering clamor and strife until the majority shall be wea- 



240 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



ried and worried into the purchase of their peace on any terms and at any 
price, and thus be made to yield to the minority, then farewell to all peace 
as well as all prosperity in our Churches. It is one of the most admirable 
features of the teachings of our Church that a controlling power in such 
matters as belong to the congregation is in the majority, and the minorities 
are taught the duties of submission and conformity to the will and voice of 
the majority. Where there is a difference between a majority and a minority, 
both can not have their views ; they can not keep up contention and strife 
without destroying the peace of the Church ; nay, contention and strife will 
put at peril the very life of all piety in any Church so afflicted. One party 
or the other must yield in a Christian spirit and embrace each other in the 
bonds of fraternal peace, or far better for the cause and interests of religion 
would it be for such a Church to be disbanded and no more exhibit before 
the world the devil's work of contention and strife. 

Now, in this case the majority is admitted, and facts before the Assembly 
show it to be a large majority; yet now, for not months only, but for years, 
has the minority denied and defied their voice and rights, and with outside 
help the minority has succeeded in subjecting the majority to the severest 
and sorest trials. 

How much longer is this warfare to continue ? When is peace again to 
visit our little flock ? We have trusted that under God the General Assem- 
bly will adopt some action that will stay a strife that has long brought 
reproach on the cause of religion. 

It is also said in this ground of complaint that the action of Presbytery is 
injurious to Pine Street Church and the interests of religion. For the truth 
of this I refer the General Assembly to the facts stated in the complaint. 

I have already remarked on the sixth ground of complaint. 

The seventh ground of complaint is that the pro-re-nata meetings were 
irregularly called. There had been no "emergency" or " important occur- 
rences" unknown at their last meeting. [See ioth chap, ioth sec. Form 
Gov. Assembly's Dig., p. 231.] The regular spring session of Presbytery 
had a few weeks only before adjourned, and the true condition of Pine 
Street Church was then fully known to its members. There had been 
occurrences outside of the Church. The department commander was about 
to be changed, and Marmaduke, commanding a brigade of rebels, had in- 
vaded the State, an unusual state of alarm and excitement prevailed, martial 
law was being rigorously enforced, and the time was now favorable for 
the result sought to be accomplished. The minority saw that this time was 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



24T 



" flood tide," that "led on to fortune." The state of things was such,, 
and the outside pressure upon Dr. McPheeters and his friends such, that 
he >vas compelled, as the only means for himself and friends to escape trying 
persecutors, as he and they believed, to place his resignation in the hands 
of Presbytery. And hence arose occasion for an apparent issue between 
himself and his congregation. 

But all occasion for such an issue has now passed away. We had for a 
year been laboring under a mistake in supposing that he had been debarred 
from his pulpit, with the sanction and by authority of President Lincoln, 
when in fact, from the very first, Mr. Lincoln had decided that the act of 
the local military authorities had been in error and without authority of law, 
and ordered General Curtis to restore him to all his rights as a minister, an 
order that had not been obeyed for more than a whole year. And it was 
while he was thus excluded from his pulpit, from his Church courts, and 
not permitted to appear in his own defense and vindication, bound hand and 
foot, defenseless and helpless, that the minority of the Church, with an 
ardor and zeal worthy of a better cause, were urging ex parte proceedings 
against him, seeking to vacate his pulpit. And during the whole progress 
of these proceedings, here before this General Assembly is the first time 
that he has been afforded an opportunity to appear and be heard in his own 
defense and vindication. I need not ask here for a particular hearing for 
him. He is worthy of such a hearing. He has learning, talent, piety and 
efficiency that entitle him to a place in the front ranks of our ministry. He 
is distinguished by those amiable and lovely traits of character, by that 
simple, trusting, affectionate faith, combined with a love of truth and a firm- 
ness to maintain it, so well calculated to secure the confidence and love of 
his people as well as the respect and admiration of the world. 

So his congregation believes of him, so they esteem him, and it will be to 
them a bitter, bitter grief to have him torn from them. Moderator, in the 
name of his people, I enter their solemn protest against any such result, on 
this our appeal to the justice of the highest courts of our Church. 



16 



242 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

DR. M'PHEETERS SPEECH BEFORE THE ASSEMBLY IN NEWARK. 

During the meeting of the Assembly Dr. McPheeters was 
allowed to speak for himself. He addressed the tribunal as 
follows : 

Moderator : It is with no ordinary feeling that I appear before this 
venerable Court, and find what 1 have so long sought, and sought in vain — 
an opportunity of saying something in my own defense. For, strange as it 
ought to appear in the history of an American and a Presbyterian, I stand 
before you a citizen who has been banished ; a minister w T ho has been sus- 
pended from his ministry ; a pastor who has been driven from his flock, 
and a preacher who has been forbidden to preach ; and yet up to this day, 
neither as citizen, minister nor pastor, have I had an opportunity of uttering 
one word in vindication of myself before any Court, military or ecclesiastical ; 
and not only so, but as if nothing should be wanting to make my case anoma- 
lous, under the forms of martial law I have been judged and condemned for 
supposed offenses which, if offenses, were purely ecclesiastical; and under 
the forms of ecclesiastical law I have been judged and condemned for 
offenses which were purely civil. And as this is the first and may be the 
last opportunity I shall have of saying anything in my defense, I ask the 
fathers and brethren here met in the name of the Lord Jesus to give me a 
patient and impartial hearing : and pardon me when I remind the members 
of the Court that there are matters connected with my case well calculated 
to prejudice them against me ; many things have appeared in the papers well 
calculated to bias your judgments. And I think I have a right, though it 
bears only indirectly upon the issues of this case, to make some statements 
in relation to myself and the military authorities then governing Missouri. 
I am not here, however, to bring charges against these officers of the Govern- 
ment, and I would omit the whole matter if it did not in my judgment have a 
direct bearing on the action of my Presbytery, and, unexplained, would, con- 
sciously or unconsciously, have a controlling influence on the result you will 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



243 



reach. Allow me, then, in the briefest way I can, to give you some facts in the 
history of the difficulties of Pine Street Church, which, in their development 
and progress, have become matters of the deepest interest to the Churches 
in Missouri and involve questions of the gravest importance to the whole 
Church of God. In the summer of i860, by the advice of my physicians and 
with the consent of my Church, I left St. Louis to spend a year in New Mexico 
for my health. It was while I was in that Territory that our present fearful 
civil war began. Every one who knows anything of the history of Missouri 
knows that at first it was doubtful on which side that State would take her 
stand. Now, sir, it so happened in the Providence of God that in May, 1 86 1, 
I addressed to my Church a pastoral letter, calling their attention to some of 
the duties of Christians in view of our civil strife. In that letter, which I now 
hold in my hand, I stated distinctly the course which, as a matter of principle 
and conscience, I intended to pursue upon my return to my pastoral charge. 
And the precise line of conduct marked out for myself in that letter, written 
in that remote place — written when I was wholly ignorant of the polit- 
ical views of my charge — written when the status of Missouri was uncer- 
tain — written when men felt free to utter their innermost thoughts, is just 
the line of conduct which, my enemies being judges, I have steadily pur- 
sued. I thank God that in His Providence I was led to write that pastoral 
letter, for, while I know it is no evidence that the positions then taken are 
wise or right, it is evidence that they were positions taken from a sense 
of duty, and it gives me the means of refuting the cruel slander and wicked 
insinuation that my ministerial conduct has been determined not by convic- 
tion of duty, but by hostility to the Government under which I live. 

I will read an extract to show my position at that time. The letter is 
dated Fort Union, New Mexico, May 14, 1861 : "As from time to time 
intelligence has reached this place from the States, my heart has been filled 
with sadness and gloom beyond the power of words to express. For a 
time I did hope that a merciful and long suffering God would in His Provi- 
dence interpose and shield the country from civil war and its necessary 
horrors ; the latest news, however, leaves no doubt on my mind that the 
Divine arm is bare to smite our land with His terrible but righteous judg- 
ments. I feel sure that before this commnnication reaches you a civil war 
will be begun, the end and result of which no human foresight can predict. 

" In these circumstances, I feel an irresistible inclination to address you 
a pastoral letter upon some points which it seems important to bring dis- 
tinctly before your mind at such a time as this. With the purely civil and 



244 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



political questions which now shake the country to its centre I do not feel 
called upon, either as your pastor or as a minister of Christ, to speak. I 
am rejoiced that my duty, as well as my inclination, leads me into a higher, 
purer, and better sphere than this. No, dear brethren, I wish to address 
you, not as a friend or advocate of any party or section, but as an ambassa- 
dor of One " whose kingdom is not of this world." So far from wishing 
to swell with my voice the din of words uttered by any section or party, I 
wish to say something about your duties to Christ and his kingdom — some- 
thing about the obligations and dangers which belong to you as Christians, 
living in the circumstances which surround you." 

Soon after writing this letter I returned to Missouri. Removed, as I 
had been, from the intense political excitement which prepared the way for 
and culminated in civil war, I can never forget the impression made upon 
me as soon as I reached the western extremity of Missouri, and entered, as 
it were, the outer circle of the mighty whirlwind of passion and excitement 
which seemed to agitate and control the entire population. I was filled with 
amazement and sorrow, and, to tell the simple truth, there was the firofound- 
est recoil of my soul from nearly every thing I saw or heard. And long 
before I reached home I had formed a fixed resolution on two points : one 
was, as a citizen to do all duties plainly enjoined upon me by the Word of 
God; and the other was, both as a citizen and minister, to stand aloof, as 
far as possible, from the whole civil contest. How far this last resolution 
was wise or even possible I am not arguing, I state it simply as a fact — a 
fact that will help to explain much of my conduct and more of my troubles. 

Upon reaching home I was cheered by the condition of my Church. It 
w r as in a state of peace and apparent harmony, and still more was I pleased 
when, frankly stating to the members of the Church the course I had 
marked out for myself, every one, without exception, said it met their cordial 
approval. 

The following spring, against my desire, I w T as sent as a Commissioner 
to the General Assembly that met in Columbus, Ohio. It will be remem- 
bered by all that Dr. Breckinridge's paper on the state of the country was 
introduced at that time and was passed by the Assembly. Some of you 
may also recollect that I was one of a small minority who opposed it on the 
floor and protested against it when it passed. The debate on the paper was 
published in the secular journals, and my remarks were made the ground 
of a characteristic assault by one or two of the most violent party papers in 
St. Louis, and, for some time after, the assault w T as kept up in short anony- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



245 



mous pieces, strangely malignant and wrecklessly false. In the meantime 
the political excitement in Missouri was increasing. The two parties, since 
known as the radicals and conservatives, were struggling into birth, and 
even then giving premonitions of the agitation soon to follow. The com- 
munity was divided, restless, excited; and, simultaneously with this struggle 
in the State, there began to be signs of a corresponding agitation in the 
Churches. 

I learned afterward that the Provost-Marshal-General at the time acting 
took so much offense at what I did in that Assembly that he at one time was 
determined to arrest me on my return to the city. 

About the same time a question arose between me and a minority in my 
Church upon this point. They wished me to give them for publication a 
statement of my views and personal position on the questions agitating and 
dividing the country ; and this they demanded of me as their pastor. 

I denied the right they had to ask me as their pastor such questions, and 
I declined answering. 

Into this matter I do not intend to go, as it does not properly come into 
the question at issue before the General Assembly ; it would open a wide 
field in bringing in some grave personal questions which, in my judgment, 
should not be here discussed and which I will not introduce. 

This question between myself and a small minority of my Church was a 
question they had a perfect right to carry before my Presbytery ; and if they 
had done so that court might have given a deliverance that would have 
settled the whole thing, either by my resigning my pastoral charge or by 
these brethren being brought to change their mind. At that time it would 
have been an easy matter to have dissolved the pastoral relation ; in fact, 
nothing but a most earnest remonstrance signed by six out of seven Elders 
and by four-fifths of the Church prevented me from tendering my resignation. 

Most unfortunately this question, which I regarded as only a question of 
a pastor's rights and duties, instead of being taken up and issued by a 
Church Court, by some mea?ts got before a very different court ; and as this 
and what grew out of it has made an impression calculated to prejudice my 
case, and as the action of Presbytery was influenced, if not determined, by 
this event, I must be permitted to explain this matter of my arrest, and 
show what course I felt constrained to pursue in connection with it. 

On the day of its date I received the order of banishment. 

The reception of this order from an official was the first thing I heard of 
it ; there had been no examination of me, no trial. Now, it is proper to 



246 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



state that there had been a change in the office of Provost- Marshal-General 
in November. For a few months before November one of the ablest 
lawyers of Missouri held that position. It was while he was in office that 
I first heard rumors that the affairs of Pine Street Church and its pastor 
were subjects of discussion among some of the members of the Church as 
things that the military might take in hand. Hints were time and again 
thrown out that the minority might, if so disposed, have possession of Pine 
Street Church by military authority. I therefore waited upon both the 
District Provost- Marshal and the Provost-Marshal-General and requested, 
if charges were made against me or the Church of which I was pastor, 
that I might have an opportunity of making explanation and defense before 
any action should be taken. The reply of the Provost- Marshal- General 
would have entirely removed any apprehension, if I had entertained any. 
He said, at once, that he had nothing to do with churches or ministers, as 
such. He only dealt with citizens. If anything disloyal was done by any 
citizen, no matter where it was done, he would hold him responsible. 
But he would not entertain a charge against a Church and would take no 
part in their disputes. He told me further that he knew of no charge 
against me in the office, and that if I was accused he would hear my 
defense. This was entirely satisfactory to me. 

How much I wish this course had been pursued. I believe it would have 
saved a world of trouble to myself and Pine Street Church, for, if called 
upon, I was prepared to make answer about any part of my conduct as a 
citizen. I would have shown the authorities that my allegiance to the 
United States and the State of Missouri I not only acknowledged, but in 
the form and manner prescribed by law had voluntarily certified, under 
the solemnity of an oath, that what pledges the State asked I had given. I 
would have shown that, as a matter of conscience and as a matter of fact, 
I obeyed all laws and was subject to all civil and military authorities. I 
would have admitted, as is obviously true, that a citizen, while acknowledg- 
ing his allegiance and keeping clearly within the language of his oath — while 
violating no law upon the statute book and rendering formal obedience to 
the constituted authorities, might in times like these pursue a course of con- 
duct the design, purpose, or evident effect of which so obviously tended to 
breed discontent, to ferment discord, or to obstruct the legitimate action of 
Government as to make him not only a bad citizen, but even an intolerable 
member of an agitated community; and, admitting this, I would have asked 
where was the man who would dare charge me with a word written or 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 247 

spoken, or an act in public or in private, justly chargeable with such an 
offense ? Now, sir, I ask you to look at this order. Does it not lie upon 
the very surface that my resisting the right of a few members of my Church 
to drag me, as a pastor, before the public, on my personal and private views 
of civil and political matters, is the ground of the action against me ? It is 
not Samuel B. McPheeters, a citizen of Missouri, who has done thus and 
so. I rejoice that those who accused me found "none occasion " against 
me "concerning the kingdom," and they would have had none except they 
found it against me concerning what I considered the law of my God. This 
order, as far as I can see, does not contemplate the citizen; it is "the Rev. 
Samuel B. McPheeters, Pastor of Pine Street Church." "Well, sir, what 
has the Pastor of Pine Street Church done?" " He refused, when urged 
by certain loyal members of his congregation, to avow his sentiments openly, 
and to take a stand in favor of the Government." Then follows his course 
in the General Assembly of his Church. "He has used all the influence 
of his ministerial character to prevent the body of the Church with which 
he is connected from manifesting or declaring its loyalty to the Govern- 
ment." 

There are many in this house to-day who were members of that Assem- 
bly ; they will remember that what I then said was on the constitutional 
right of a Church Court to pass such a resolution, and on the inexpediency 
of the thing. Some of the best men in the Church took the same view. 
But I no more dreamed that an argument upon the expediency or constitu- 
tutionality of the General Assembly adopting a paper submitted to them — 
an argument which even those who failed to see its force could not fail to 
see was guarded, temperate, and absolutely free from all allusion to political 
questions — sir, I no more dreamed that such an argument would have been 
considered an offense against the peace of Missouri and an evidence of dis- 
loyalty than I dreamed that my declaring myself a subject of King Jesus 
could be considered an act of high treason against the State. 

And, further still : " He has refused to observe, in their obvious meaning 
and intent, the recommendations of the President of the United States to the 
various Churches." The only recommendation I remember made at that 
time was the day of fasting and prayer, and I did observe that, and with all 
my soul I called upon the people of my charge to humble themselves before 
God and repent, if so be that God would look upon us that we perish not. 

Nor is this all, nor is it the worst. The Pastor of Pine Street Church has 
not been the only offender. The Session and the congregation have sinned 



248 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



in sustaining him, and they are punished by having the control of the build- 
ing and the records taken out of their hands and put into the hands of a 
military commission. The church is taken, not for a hospital, not for bar- 
racks, not for any military use, but as a Church, and to be conducted as a 
Church; and it so happens that this commission is the very committee ap- 
pointed by the minority of Pine Street Church to conduct the correspond- 
ence, and they are by order to select the minister whose preaching this 
Church shall hear, and his one qualification is specified, and that not piety 
or orthodoxy, but "loyalty." 

Sir, it is no part of my purpose before this body to arraign the officers of 
the Government for what they did in this matter. I wish to be fair to them. 
While I have complained of their bringing military authority to bear upon 
Church matters, I always remember the circumstances under which they 
acted. The State was agitated, and had been recently convulsed by armed 
resistance to the national authority. Absolute power was committed to 
their hands to see that the State suffered no damage. Neither my ministry, 
nor my pastorate, nor my pulpit gave me any exemption if I disturbed the 
State. They had a right to drag me from the altar of God if I made that 
altar a place to carry out plans of sedition. They ought in justice, however, 
to have heard my defense, and they should have refrained from laying any 
hands on the rights of Christ's Church. 

The day after this order was issued the Session met, and under solemn 
protest declared they were ready to hand the Church edifice, records and 
books over to the military commission, and declared their authority super- 
seded while the order should last. . 

For myself, feeling not only that the liberty of the Church of God was 
invaded, but that the honor of the Government was involved, I determined 
at once to lay the whole matter before the authorities at Washington. I 
prepared a formal paper addressed to the Attorney-General, and asked, 
whatever was done with me, that the wrongs done to the Church of Christ 
might not be allowed. Upon further consideration I determined not to 
send the papers, but, accompanied by an elder of the Church, to carry them 
in person to Washington. I immediately waited upon the Attorney- General, 
and, showing him the order, was told by him that the case did not come in 
his department. I asked him to assist me in getting audience with the 
President, which he kindly promised to do on the next day; and being 
anxious to have what I said in writing, and not having time or strength that 
night to change the form of my papers, I read to Mr. Lincoln the paper 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



249 



which I had prepared at home for the Attorney- General, but which I had 
not shown him, and about which I had no conversation with the Attorney- 
General further than I have just related. I will read the paper to show 
what view I took of this order and what objection I made to it. I wish to 
show you that in all this matter I have been contending for the kingly rights 
of Christ in His Church : 

St. Louis, Mo., December 23, 1862. 
Hon. Edward Bates, Attorney-General of the United States : 

Dear Sir : Knowing how much your time is occupied in the discharge 
of the duties of your office, it is with extreme reluctance that I ask your 
consideration of the case which I have to submit. And if it were an indi- 
vidual or private matter, or one of small moment, I would not trouble you ; 
but it is one so important in the principle involved, and may be so far- 
reaching in its consequences, that I feel compelled to call your official atten- 
tion to it. 

Inclosed I send you an order of Major-General Curtis, and the documents 
and papers connected with and resulting in this order. 

From these papers it will be seen that a question of a purely ecclesiastical 
nature has been raised between some of the members of my Church and 
myself as to the rights involved in the relation of a pastor to his people, to- 
wit : Whether the members of a Presbyterian Church have a right to de- 
mand of their pastor that he should define, in writing, his views and position 
on civil and political questions. For the reasons set forth at large in the 
accompanying documents I denied and resisted this claim of right. My 
whole action in this matter has been the result of religious convictions and 
my life-long views of the nature and duty of the Gospel ministry. The 
members of my Church who made this demand at first tried to coerce 
obedience by ecclesiastical means. They tried to get a majority of the 
Church to ask for a dissolution of the pastoral relation. In this they utterly 
failed. Four-fifths of the Church and all of the Church Session, numbering 
seven, except one, without distinction of party or opinion, adhered to me. 
Intimations had been thrown out in conversation that, if in no other way, 
the military authorities would be appealed to to enforce their views. I have 
no positive evidence as to the persons who brought the matter before the 
military authorities, but the order of General Curtis, on its face, shows that 
it rests upon this controversy in my Church. 

It is proper for me further to state that no notice was given me, nor was 
I examined or in any way questioned as to the truth or falsehood of the 



250 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



charges made. Now, the points to which I desire to call your official atten- 
tion are these : 

1. That the military authorities have assumed to decide an ecclesiastical 
question between me and some of the members of my charge, and that they 
have construed my denial of the right which they claim to demand of me as 
their pastor — an answer to civil and political questions — as an act of disloy- 
alty to the Govern??ie?it. 

2. That in this order the military authorities have made my action in the 
Church court upon questions purely ecclesiastical a matter not only of 
military review, but of military punishment. The language of the order is : 

"And, whereas, the said McPheeters, acting with others of the same de- 
nomination, has used all the influence of his ministerial character to prevent 
the body of the Church with which he is connected from declaring or mani- 
festing its loyalty to the Government." 

This can only refer to my course in the last General Assembly of the 
Presbyterian Church ; for these questions have not come up in any other 
Church courts with which I am connected. I did, however, in the General 
Assembly of May last, oppose certain resolutions introduced into that body 
which I regarded as an indirect violation of the Constitution of the Presby- 
terian Church, which says : ' ' Synods or councils are to handle or conclude 
nothing but what is ecclesiastical, and are not to intermeddle with civil 
affairs which concern the Commonwealth, unless by way of humble petition 
in cases extraordinary, or by way of advice for satisfaction of conscience, 
if they be thereunto required by the civil magistrate." [Confession of 
Faith, Chapter XXXI, Sec. 4. ] I said nothing as to the merits of the 
civil question upon which the decision of the Assembly was asked. I only 
maintained that it had no right to "handle or conclude" such matters. 
This was certainly no offense for which I should be subjected to military 
punishment, and, I humbly submit, a subject upon which it was not proper 
for them to decide. 

Third. It will moreover be seen that the military authorities are dealing 
with me not as a citizen, but distinctly and formally as a minister of the 
Gospel. They commanded me to " cease from this date the functions of" 
my " office in the State of Missouri." Now, my office as a minister of the 
Gospel I do not receive from the State, but from the Church of Christ, and 
its functions can only be suspended by those from whom I received my 
office ; and it seems to me that the military authorities should not sit in judg- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 25 1 

ment upon that office — that they should only know me as a citizen, and only 
deal with me as such. 

Fourth, It will be further seen in the order that the military authorities 
take command not only of the church edifice, but of the books and papers — 
/. e. t the Church records, and order them to be given into the hands of three 
individuals, who, while they are members of the Church, and one of them 
an Elder, are not the persons to whom the Church has or would commit 
them, if permitted to declare her will ; and, further still, it will be seen from 
this order, that these same three individuals are appointed by the military to 
fill the pulpit and determine what kind of religious instruction the Church 
shall have. All this is not only done, but it is published to the world in an 
order which will be read through the country. 

I have felt it to be my duty, not only as a minister of the Gospel, but as 
a good citizen, to call the distinct attention of the Government to this mat- 
ter, and ask, if this order is not in accordance with the Constitution, laws, 
and usages of the United States, that such steps may be taken as shall be 
necessary to correct it. In the meantime, I design to render implicit 
obedience to all these orders ; for while I can not admit that my ministerial 
office, or the government and worship of the Church, is under the direction 
of the civil or military authorities, yet I feel it my duty to set an example of 
obedience, and to wait the correction which I feel convinced will be made 
by those having the ultimate decision of the matter. And it is, in my esteem, 
a happy circumstance that I find in the legal adviser of the Government 
one who, at the same time, is so well acquainted with the history and Con- 
stitution of the Church in which I am a minister. 

I have said nothing of what I consider the cruel personal wrong which is 
done to me by this order. It can be considered as nothing less than an 
official endorsement of a letter which appears in the Missouri Democrat, 
(newspaper) December 13, 1862, signed by the three individuals to whom 
Gen. Curtis hands over the Church to which I minister, which letter I regard 
as a most shameless and false assault upon my character, so that if this order 
is permitted to remain, the whole influence of the Government, to which I 
have a right to look for protection, sends me out branded with crimes which 
I contemplate with horror and which I indignantly deny that I have com- 
mitted. 

The only offense, if offense it be, which malice itself can charge against 
me is, that, being a minister of the Gospel, I have aimed to stand aloof, not 
only in public, but in private, from the exciting discussions of these unhappy 



252 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

times, and to devote all my energies to the distinctive duties of my calling. 
But while this has been the course which I have thought proper and becom- 
ing me, as a man set apart by the Church of God, to deal with men about 
their highest interests, I have, at the same time, not forgotten my duty as a 
citizen. In a formal paper read before the General Assembly of the Pres- 
byterian Church, and which is upon its records, and was published through 
the country, I declared "that true allegiance and lawful subjection and 
obedience to the civil government, as an ordinance of God, are among the 
highest duties of religion;" and more recently still, in the public prints and 
over my own signature, I declared that, "as a citizen, I hold it to be a 
most important and indispensable part of my duty to God to obey law, to 
submit to the authorites, to pray for them, to render them the honors due 
their several stations, and to promote peace and quietness;" and what is 
more, I have not only taught this in words, but by my example I have 
declared the same thing, by the quiet but unhesitating manner in which I 
have gone forward in the discharge of every civil duty enjoined upon me, 
either by the Word of God or by the laws of the land, and especially by 
voluntarily taking the following oath, enjoined by the State Convention of 
Missouri, June 10th, 1862, upon those who solemnize the right of matri- 
mony. [Here the oath was inserted.] 

But while I feel that it is hard for a course like this that I should be 
driven as a criminal from my home into a climate unfriendly to my impaired 
health, and among strangers who are, by an official paper, warned to suspect 
me, I say, while I feel all this to be a great wrong, I do not come io make any 
personal plea. If the good of the State requires that a quiet and peaceful 
family should be banished, that an innocent man should be treated as a 
criminal, let it be done. The man is not worthy the name of a man who is 
not willing to suffer even, wrongfully, for the public good. I come to ask 
that the Church may be left to her liberty; that the military authorities be 
not permitted to judge and decide between me and the members of my 
Church upon purely ecclesiastical questions ; that they be not permitted to 
assume authority over the government and worship of the Presbyterian 
Church. 

Let this be done and I am prepared to show, by patient endurance, the 
kind and degree of obedience which, as a Christian citizen, I am ready to 
render to the "powers that be." 

As for the rest, I shall calmly but confidently leave my character and my 
innocency to be vindicated by that Divine Providence before whom even a 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 253 

sparrow does not fall unobserved and who can make all things work together 
for his people's good. 

What is proper to be done in this matter is not for me to decide, but I 
most earnestly and respectfully request that the subject may receive such 
attention as is proper. 

The only personal request I make is, that if the sentence of banishment 
is carried out, that I may have sufficient time allowed me to make reasonable 
preparation for my departure, and that I may be permitted to choose what 
locality I prefer in ' 'the loyal States," or to go to a foreign country, if I 
shall so elect. 

Very respectfully, 

SAMUEL B. McPHEETERS. 

Now, sir, the result of this, though I did not know it for tw elve months 
after, was that the President sustained me in every one of my positions. 
He left me as a citizen, like all other citizens, to be dealt with according to my 
conduct. He directed the military not to interfere with the Churches. This 
was done in a letter dated January 2, 1863, which letter has been published 
extensively by the press. 

Before I left the President he sent a dispatch, which, after writing, he 
read to me, and it was, I believe, in these precise words : 

" Suspend the order against Dr. McPheeters until further orders." 

The immediate effect of the President's telegram was the issuing of the 
following order : 

"Office of the Provost-Marshal-General, 
Department of the Missouri, 

St. Louis, December 28, 1862. 

"Rev. S. B. McPheeters and Wife: 

"The order made against you on the 19th of December is modified until 
further orders, to this extent : that you are not required to leave the State. 

"By order of Major-General Curtis. 

"F. A. DICK," 
" Lieut. -Col., Provost-Marshal-General." 

This was the interpretation given the President's telegram ; the suspen- 
sion was understood as applying only to my banishment, not to the part of 
the order relating to my ministry, though this was the very point I had 
presented, and was to me far the more important objection to the order. 
That I so regarded it is perfectly manifest from the paper submitted to the 
President; and yet you will observe this is the thing carefully retained. 



2 54 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



The order of December 28 suspended my banishment, but left me for- 
bidden to exercise the functions of my ministry, and left the Church in the 
hands of the military commission. There can be and is no doubt that the 
sentence suspending my ministerial office lasted for a year ; for not only did 
the Commanding General, upon being asked, give this interpretation to his 
order, but I have the official documents to prove it. It is a fact, and one 
bearing directly on what my Presbytery did, that for a year, without any 
authority from the head of the Government, I was virtually deposed from 
the gospel ministry. During that time I was in the full enjoyment of all 
my civil rights. I might vote at elections ; buy or sell ; practice medicine 
or law, if I had been qualified; but it would have been 'a military offense 
for me to have administered the Lord's Supper, imposed hands in ordina- 
tion, preached a sermon, or taken a seat in an ecclesiastical court in the 
State of Missouri. This is surely marvelous, even in these times. "What 
does it mean ? What interpretation did I, naturally, put upon it ? Why, 
sir, it was quite impossible for me not to see that the military authorities did 
not deal with me as with a citizen whom they regarded as dangerous or 
injurious to the State. Suspected citizens were put under heavy bonds to 
do no disloyal thing ; no bonds were ever asked of me. I went where I 
pleased; did what I pleased; said what I pleased, just as any other citizen 
not a minister. Suppose it had been seriously believed, as charged in the 
original order, that I was " exerting an injurious influence, especially upon 
the youth and other members of my congregation, leading them to adopt 
sentiments of hostility to the Government and become open rebels," how 
strange, by stopping my ordinary avocations, that they should throw my 
whole time idly upon my hands for this work ; by calling attention to me 
that they should give me a larger field of operation ; by punishing me, give 
me, in a tenfold degree, the influence of sympathy to work upon and the 
motive of revenge to stir me up to work. This was strange confidence to 
be placed in me, if I had been regarded as a dangerous citizen. 

But, on the supposition that I was regarded as a refractory minister, who 
would not, in his pulpit and official character, take the stand in support of 
the civil government which it was thought I should, the measures adopted 
were wise and reasonable. I was deposed from the ministry. The truth 
is, as a citizen I had not offended, and as a citizen I was not punished. 
As a minister, I had offended, not by what I did, but by what I did not do, 
and I was silenced. The military laid hold of me because they did not 
understand some matters of duty as I did. I differed from them not about 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



2 5S 



rendering to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, but about what things are 
Caesar's, and what are God's ; and, more than this, I judged what things 
were Caesar's, not by what Caesar claimed, but by what God said Caesar had 
a right to claim. Caesar gets his rights to my obedience from God. And 
the same God who made a Caesar his "minister for good," in a kingdom 
of this world, made me a minister for salvation in a kingdom not of this 
world. If Caesar, as God's minister, has rights which I must not deny or 
fail to render, so I have rights which he must not invade. If I invade 
Caesar's rights, God gives him the sword and he may smite ; if Caesar 
invades my rights, God promises me support and bids me be patient. 

The order, as it affected Pine Street Church, remained in force from De- 
cember 19, 1862, to March 4, 1863. During that time, the Church was not 
under the control of the Session, but was managed and governed by the 
military commission. 

When this night-mare was removed from the Church, the only part of the 
original order remaining was that which prevented me "exercising the 
functions of my ministry in Missouri." In March a friend, on his own 
motion, visited the Commanding General and tried to get that order set 
aside. I shall ask the liberty of reading a letter which I wrote to this 
friend, which will show the views I entertained in regard to that part of the 
order, and explain a subsequent part of my conduct, which I am about to 
narrate, and which has been much blamed and misrepresented: 

St. Louis, March I3#i, 1863. 
My Dear Friend : I thank you very sincerely for what you have done 
in trying to induce Gen. Curtis to remove the only part of the military order 
of December 19 that affects me; and I especially thank you as it was done 
without any solicitation or even knowledge of what you were doing. I have 
thought over what you suggested to me last night, of going to see Gen. 
Curtis myself, but I can not see my way clear to do so. I certainly have no 
disposition to shrink from any investigation into my conduct as a citizen. 
When it was first whispered that the military intended to take some action 
in regard to myself and Pine Street Church, I went to both Provost-Marshals 
Leighton and Gantt and made a special request that I might be examined 
before any action was taken. But a moment's consideration will show you 
why I can not of my own accord pursue that course now. What is the state 
of the case as it now stands ? The original order contained two things, and 
but two, affecting me. One was my banishment, the other prohibiting me 



256 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

from exercising the functions of my ministry in this State. By the order 
of December 28 the order concerning my banishment was suspended. The 
only thing against me now is, that my office as a minister of the Gospel is 
taken away by the military authorities. As far as I know, I may do any- 
thing that any other citizen may lawfully do. I may buy and sell, vote, 
lecture on science, or teach school, but I can not preach, administer the 
sacraments of the Church, or sit in an Ecclesiastical Court. I have all my 
rights as a citizen, but am deposed as a minister. I do not believe, I never 
have believed, that Gen. Curtis ever meant to do this. If I had known that 
you intended to see him I would have urged you to bring this point dis- 
tinctly before his mind. It seems to me plain that no offense that I could 
commit would justify either the civil or military authorities in suspending the 
functions of my ministry, because my office of a minister comes from the 
Church and not from the State. For crime I might be executed or banished 
or fined, but not deposed by the State or any of its officers, and the State 
has no more right to depose me than the Church has to banish or hang me. 
You will understand from this why I can not volunteer to go before the mili- 
tary authorities to make any statements or to undergo any examination with 
a view to being restored to my ministry. Would it not be plainly to admit 
that the military have a right to examine me as to my fitness to preach and 
administer the sacraments of the Church ? I do not believe the General 
would wish me to do this. I do not wish to say anything that would be 
misunderstood, and I have been misunderstood by the authorities from the 
beginning on this whole subject. I have aimed to keep to my appropriate 
work as a minister, and leave the State to manage its own affairs in its own 
way. I have often said to you, and I still say, that I have no idea that Gen. 
Curtis has ever intended to do me a wrong ; there is no conceivable motive 
why he should. My misfortune has been to have had those who, without 
cause and without conscience, have misrepresented me. I am certainly very 
anxious to be restored to my Church and my duties ; but I can not even 
for so desirable an object do what I believe would be wrong; and, therefore, 
I can not do anything which would seem to admit that any civil or military 
officer whatever has a right to judge of or decide upon my fitness to do the 
work of a minister. From what you said I do not know whether or not you 
will see Gen. Curtis again. If you do, and he asks why I do not adopt the 
course which you suggested last night, you may gather from what I have 
said what answer I would like you to give. When the sentence of banish- 
ment was removed, it seems to me that everything was removed that the 



MEMOIR OF S. B. m'pHEETERS, D. D\ 



military should ever have passed. I was very glad for not being banished, 
for while I knew I did not deserve it, it was what they were empowered to 
do. My not being hindered from preaching and administering Christian 
ordinances is, I think, my right, but whether you will get a soldier to see 
with a theologian's eyes is a different matter. At any rate I thank you for 
what you endeavored to do. 

Your friend, S. B. McPHEETERS. 

Well, sir, this letter was never seen by the General. I do not think that 
any one ever explained to him the view that I took of this order, though I 
never failed to declare that I considered it as an encroachment upon the 
rights of Christ as sole King in His Church, which I could never acknowl- 
edge. And I felt especially bound not to abandon that principle, because, 
while the authority used was the General's, I well knew who were the real 
parties inducing him to exercise his authority in that particular way, and* 
yet, in the nature of the case, I was obliged to deal with the whole matter 
as it appeared on the face of the order. 

Soon after, another effort was made to get that sentence removed. Some 
six or seven gentlemen of high standing waited upon the Commanding 
General and asked him to remove the sentence. He received them kindly 
and heard them patiently. He said, among other things, that he had not 
seen the order until it was published ; that he did not know, until informed, 
that I had taken the oath of allegiance. He promised them to take the 
matter into consideration. The impression made upon the gentlemen who 
waited on the General was, that their mission would be successful. Several 
days intervened, and during this time the matter was no little talked of in 
the congregation. I know not whom the General consulted, or who con- 
sulted with him while he had the matter under advisement, but I received, 
on the 29th of March, the following letter: 

LETTER FROM GENERAL CURTIS. 

" Headquarters Department of the Missouri, > 
St. Louis, March 28th, 1863. > 
"Rev. S. B. McPheeters, St. Louis: 

" Restraint having been imposed on your exercise of public functions, 
because of supposed disloyalty, some of your friends have traversed the 
fact of your being disloyal, and desire my personal intervention. With a 
view of ascertaining your sentiments, I submit to you the following inter- 
rogatories for your answer : 

17 



258 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

" 1st. Do you wish the rebellion crushed, and are you in favor of the 
restoration of the national authority over all our territory ? 

2d. In the conflict of war now existing do you desire the success of the 
federal and the defeat of the rebel forces ? 

' ' I have the honor to be, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

"S. R. CURTIS, Major-General." 
If this was the General's ultimatum, then it was plain to me that while it 
might involve me in new dangers, it certainly would bring me no relief. 
For what answer I must return if I meant to be true to my principles was 
to me perfectly plain. I had to look at this letter in the light of the facts 
which had preceded it, and from which it could not be separated ; and well 
I knew that if I did not look at these facts that they would look at me — even 
then they were staring me in the face. They were all not only public, but 
of record. What were they? Just these: members of my Church had 
come to me with a demand for my answer, as their pastor, to certain ques- 
tions on the troubles of the country. My reply had been, you have no right 
to demand of me an answer to such questions, and I will not answer them. 
The military took the matter up, recited the facts of the case and pro- 
nounced against me a sentence of banishment, and silenced me for what I 
had refused to do. The banishment had been removed, but the prohibiting 
me from exercising the functions of my ministry had been continued. And 
the very General under whose authority all this had been done, when asked 
to remove the sentence, says to me, in effect, Answer the questions you were 
asked, and you may preach. The whole thing, from beginning to end, was 
about preaching in Pine Street Church, and the conditions first made by 
members of the Church, and now insisted upon by the General, is answer- 
ing these questions. How could I yield the point and retain my self-respect ? 

Why, sir, it was plain that the members of Pine Street Church had a far 
better right to question their pastor about his duties as pastor than the Com- 
mander of the Department of the Missouri. I could not even seem to 
admit that he had any rightful authority over the functions of my ministry. 
I had complained of that very matter to the President ; from what was 
done, I thought he had decided against me. If a General might require 
an answer; to these questions, as a condition of my preaching, he might, on 
the same principle, ask me any other. If I had done or said any thing any 
where, in public or in private, not lawful for a citizen to do or say, then 
punish me. But my duties as a minister, or what, as a pastor, I ought or 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



2 59 



ought not to do, I could not admit that the General of the Department, nor 
any nor all the officers of the Government, had any right to determine. My 
way seemed hedged up to one course, and not knowing what the result 
would be, but committing my cause to that King for whose rights I was 
contending, in a manner designed to prevent misapprehension, and to show 
all obedience in things civil, I respectfully declined to answer his questions, 
and gave him my reasons for so doing. My answer failed to convince him 
that I was right ; he did not remove the sentence ; my refusal was not con- 
sidered a new offense ; he added no punishment ; I was left as I had been 
before, a citizen free — an ambassador for Christ in bonds. 

The Presbytery of St. Louis met in April. I was not there ; the order 
prohibited my going. I need hardly say that it did not bind my conscience 
as in the sight of God, and some one may charge that I was inconsistent ; 
that according to my principles I ought to have gone and ventured the 
consequences. I thought of all this, and tried to think of it as a Christian 
man, and I came to the conclusion that it was not my duty to go. From 
the beginning I have made no issues, but sought to avoid them. I had 
only tried to meet those that were forced upon me. My position had been 
one purely defensive. So far from feeling called upon to dare or brave 
authority, I wished to make it appear distinctly that I was determined to 
yield to the utmost limits of a good conscience ; and I mention this to let 
you see that I have not attempted to play the hero or the martyr, but only 
to try, amid many weaknesses and infirmities, to keep in what seemed to me 
the path of duty. 

About this time I had great hopes that relief would come to the whole 
matter, as far as military law was concerned ; for it had now become evi- 
dent that there was to be a change in the command of the Department, and 
I entertained strong hopes that a General might come who would not think 
the functions of a gospel minister in the limits of military control; whether 
any feared what I hoped I do not know. At any rate the affairs of Pine 
Street Church and its pastor very suddenly took a new turn. They were 
brought before the Presbytery of St. Louis, at a special meeting called for 
the expressed purpose of " dissolving the pastoral relation." 

The history of this case, as it stands connected with the Church Courts, 
is as distinctly presented in a memorial which has been sent up, signed by a 
majority of the .Ministers and Sessions of St. Louis Presbytery, that I shall 
have but little to say about it. On one point, however, I wish to say a 
word in explanation of my own acts in relation to that Presbytery. I wish 



260 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



to explain to the Assembly, briefly, why I felt constrained to put into the 
hands of that Presbytery my resignation as pastor of Pine Street Church. 
I was fully determined not to do so twenty-four hours before the Presbytery 
met. Let me recount, in the briefest possible way, the circumstances under 
which this pro-re-nata meeting was called, and what it was that determined 
me to do what I did. The Spring Session of Presbytery adjourned April 10; 
this meeting was called May 4. Presbytery at that meeting knew every- 
thing in relation to Pine Street Church ; its matters had been up before them 
upon a memorial sent by the Session to Presbytery. No new developments 
had been made when the three Ministers and four Elders called the meet- 
ing ; and never was a meeting called at a time so manifestly improper to 
hear a case. Just before this call was issued a very unexpected raid had 
been made into Southeastern Missouri by a portion of the Southern army. 
The most exaggerated reports of the number and designs of the invading 
forces were circulated and believed. St. Louis, it was said, was to be 
attacked and captured. The city was in a state of commotion. The military 
were for a time moving day and night, and many of the citizens exhibited 
signs of panic. Martial law, as a matter of course, was administered with 
more than usual rigor. Arrests were numerous. The city was full of 
rumors of banishments to follow. The papers, of a certain class, were 
demanding that all suspected persons should be driven out. Now, sir, it 
was just in the wake of this time of agitation that this meeting was called 
to convene in ten days, in the city of St. Louis, to consider matters con- 
cerning a brother minister already under a suspended sentence of banis- 
ment and an actual sentence of suspension from the ministry ! And the 
matter to be considered is, shall this minister, whom the military authorities 
say may not preach, retain his pastoral relation ? I appeal to every impar- 
tial, right-thinking man in this Assembly — to every Presbyterian who glories 
in the noble Constitution of his Church, which secures a fair hearing to the 
vilest reprobate — if anything short of an absolute necessity would excuse 
those who called that meeting at that time. 

Was that time of excitement a time favorable for hearing impartially a 
case entangled by military orders, as was the case of the pastor of Pine 
Street Church? No one of us then knew that the President had cut the 
order which had tied together the keys of the Church to the sword of the 
State. But was it kind, was it Christian, to ask brethren to go up and take 
the keys and open what those who held the sword said should be shut? I 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



26l 



will not disguise from you, sir, that it made the most painful impression on 
my mind. 

The notice which the Stated Clerk, who headed the call, served upon me 
did not relieve my mind. It is very short. I will read it, omitting his 
name : 

"St. Louis, May 4, 1863. 

"Rev. Dr. McPheeters: 

" Dear Bro. : As your military sentence precludes your attendance, I 
presume I need send you no official notice of a meeting of Presbytery, called 
for the 15th, in which you are concerned. It, however, is but fair that you 
should be apprised of it. Its object you can learn from the notice served 
Bro. Coe. Respectfully, ." 

At the same time he served the formal notice upon Pine Street Church 
which the Constitution directs to be sent to vacant Churches ! I entirely 
acquit the Stated Clerk of any purpose to offer me a personal indignity. It 
was not that ; and if it had been it would be of no importance to mention 
it here. But as an unconscious expression of the fact that in his esteem 
the suspension of the functions of my ministry by military authority changed 
my official relations to my Church courts, it is of importance. If I had 
been sick, unable to move hand or foot, he would, without question, have 
served on me the proper official notice. But in his view I was virtually de- 
posed — officially I was entitled to no formal notice — as a matter of ' ' fair- 
ness " he is willing to put me in the way of getting information, if I think it 
worth my while to take the trouble to do so. Vacant Churches, however, 
are entitled to formal notice, and he sends to Pine Street Church the proper 
paper! Do I mistake in this matter? Was it a simple inadvertency? Sir, 
this Stated Clerk was no novice in his office ; he had been Stated Clerk for 
six or seven years, and our personal intercourse at this time was formal 
rather than cordial. But if a doubt remains on any mind, look at the call 
itself, which the Stated Clerk heads, asking for the pro-re-nata meeting. 
If ever there was a distinct laying out of work about which there were no 
contingencies or uncertainties to be taken into account, it is here: it is " to 
take measures to remove the grievances under which Pine Street Church 
has been laboring for some months past, and to dissolve the pastoral rela- 
tion between that Church and Rev. Samuel B. McPheeters." There is 
plainly no lingering doubt on the minds of those who called the meeting 
about the "grievance," the remedy to be applied in removing it, and a 
* ' clear way" in applying it. The grievance is a deposed minister holding a 



262 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



nominal pastorate — the remedy is to cut the nominal tie that binds the living 
Church to the defunct minister, and military order No. 152, Dec. 19, 1862, 
has made the "clearway." So rapidly do men's minds become familiar 
with a new order of things — so natural is it, when men's ideas become con- 
fused about the sole headship of Christ in His Church, to begin by yielding 
what is claimed and then approving what is done, and end at last in vocifer- 
ating, " We have no king but Ccesar." 

Well, sir, notwithstanding all this, it seemed to me to be my duty, if 
possible, to attend Presbytery and meet my responsibilities and the issues 
involved. For this purpose I solicited the Brigadier-General of the militia 
of Missouri, who was to be a member of Presbytery, to go to the Command- 
ing General and state the case, and to request him to hold me guiltless of a 
breach of his order if I should go to Presbytery and attend to matters in 
which I was personally interested. I tried to make it easy to grant the 
request. I did not, therefore, ask the General to reverse his order, but to 
suspend it. I did not ask for so much as a written exemption, but only a 
verbal assurance that he would not take notice of it. The request was 
declined. The Presbytery was to meet on Friday. The General's decision 
I learned on Wednesday. On Thursday two of the pastors of the city were 
arrested. I was convinced, by evidence which I shall not here repeat, that 
the brethren who were resolved to attend Presbytery on my account ought 
not to take their seats ; and to remove any occasion on my account for their 
attending -I determined to throw the responsibility on those who called the 
meeting, and to put my resignation in the hands of Presbytery. I made 
no request of Presbytery. I simply gave them the right to do with it what 
they pleased. Moderator, it was an act of weakness which I have ever 
since regretted. I offer no apology for what I did. I was perplexed — the 
path of duty was to me uncertain — elements were coming into the question 
for which I was not prepared. My own personal dangers I might make up 
my mind to meet ; but when it came to involving my brethren — my friends — 
I yielded. All this I laid before Presbytery, in writing, before the pastoral 
relation was dissolved, in a paper recalling my resignation, which they 
refused to entertain. 

Now, allow me to make a necessary explanation and to correct a totally 
erroneous impression that might be made by what I have just related. If 
any one gets the idea from what I have stated that I intend to say or to 
imply th?.t the military authorities were putting out their power to crush the 
Church, or that they were concerning themselves about the dissolution of a 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



263 



pastoral relation, let me tell you at once that I am asking no one to credit so 
preposterous a statement. I am neither demented myself nor assuming that 
those whom I address are so. This state of things admits of a perfectly 
rational solution on perfectly rational grounds. The military authorities 
were looking at the interests of the State which they were sent to guard. 
The State was agitated; it was their duty to keep it quiet. Not only all 
armed resistance to the authorities must at once be suppressed, but all show 
of resistance must at once be met, no matter under what pretext it be made. 
These principles are all correct. But what an opportunity does such a state 
of things give for misunderstanding, for misrepresentation ! How easy to 
excite suspicion ; how difficult to remove suspicion once excited ! There, 
sir, lies the solution. Sentence had been pronounced upon me without any 
examination. Unfortunately for all concerned, my sentence was ecclesiasti- 
cal — deposition from the ministry. I could do nothing to be relieved from 
such a sentence that even implied that I admitted the right to inflict it. 
What was required of me, therefore, I could not do. It was far easier for 
a blunt soldier to see that I did not comply with what he wanted than it 
was to see the grounds upon which I did it. Distinctions which appeared 
to me very important might easily seem to him very trivial. Let this be 
the condition of things, and then let some persons claiming to be my friends 
whisper the suspicion in his ear that all this was a mere pretext — let it be 
done artfully, with apparent candor and under professions of patriotism; 
let those who agree with me be represented as defending me because they 
were confederated with me against the Government, and is it any wonder 
that, in such a state of things and in a time of excitement, it was dangerous 
to attend Presbytery and vote in a way that seemed to approve of what I 
had done and condemn what the military had done? 

I shall not stop to trace the history of my case through the several small 
pro-re-nata meetings of Presbytery until the dissolution of the pastoral 
relation was effected. You have already been informed how the St. Louis 
Presbytery received a commissioner whom they knew the Church had not 
sent, and granted a request which they new the Church never made, and in 
the name of pastor and people dissolved a relation which they knew neither 
pastor nor people desired to have dissolved. I have but two remarks to 
make upon this whole subject. One of them is, that while Presbytery by 
the hour had listened to an assault made upon me by a commissioner whom 
the Presbytery owed it to their own self-respect to have declined to receive, it 
never once occurred to them that it might be proper in them to do some- 



264 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



thing to second my efforts to get before them and answer the charges made. 
True, I made no request on that subject. So far from asking favors I 
would have been more than content with having my rights. But, Mode- 
rator, it does seem to me that if I had been one of the majority of that 
Presbytery — if I had had the ear of the military authorities as they had it 
— even if I had intended to do all that they did, that I would have felt it 
due to the forms of justice — due to the sentiments of the age in which we 
live — due to the past history of the Presbyterian Church, at least to have 
made some effort to have secured to the man whom I was judging and 
about to condemn the opportunity of a hearing. If it had been necessary 
I would have moved that Presbytery wait upon the Commanding General, 
in a body, and if I could have found no other words, I would have taken the 
language of Roman Festus, and have told him, " It was not the manner of" 
Presbyteries ' 1 to deliver any man to ' condemnation' before that he which 
is accused hear the accusers face to face, and have license to answer for 
himself concerning the crime laid against him." 

The other remark is, that if I had not been silenced by the military, and 
for a whole year kept under that sentence, without the sanction or approba- 
tion of the President of the United States, nothing that was done could 
have been accomplished. This was the great weapon with which I was 
assailed in my congregation, in the community, in the papers. It was rep- 
resented to my congregation that, when the Government condemned me, to 
sustain me was to oppose the Government. To say that they wanted me to 
be their pastor when the Government said I should not preach, was to do a 
disloyal thing ! Presbytery undertook to sustain the Government by carry- 
ing out in the Ecclesiastical Court the sentence of the Military Court. Multi- 
tudes in the city, who up to that time never so much as knew my name, 
condemned me because they wanted to support the Government, and the 
Government condemned me. If the Government undertook to manage the 
functions of my ministry, as they were on the side of the Government, it 
was all right, and they would defend the action of their Government. Un- 
fortunately for my loyalty, I believed the ministry which I received from 
Christ was not a thing for the State to manage; and, unfortunately for their 
patriotism, the Government of the United States thought upon that subject 
just as I did. The order, in all that related to the Church, was not only a 
wrong to the Church of God, but being done in the name of the Govern- 
ment, without its approval or sanction, was a wrong to the United States 
Government. When the matters were brought before the Chief Executive, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



265 



he promptly corrected what his subordinate officers had done. And I have 
an abiding confidence that this Assembly will as promptly correct what a 
subordinate Court of the Church has done. 

After I had been suspended from my ministry for a year, without my 
knowledge a petition in my behalf was gotten up, signed by some of the 
leading men of St. Louis, and sent to Washington. Just before it was sent 
a gentleman of high position with whom it was left for his signature showed 
it to me, and called my attention to the fact that there was no sufficient or 
clear statement of the case in the petition. I, therefore, made out a state- 
ment, unaccompanied with the orders upon which the statement rested, and 
it was forwarded to Washington in a way that secured its reaching the eye 
of the President. The letter of Mr. Lincoln, which has been published, 
was his reply to the first imperfect statement that was submitted to him. 
After he saw the full statement and documents which I sent, I received a 
letter from the Attorney-General from which I take the liberty of reading 
the following extract as of public interest. After stating that he had laid 
the papers before the President which had been sent him for that purpose, 
he says : 

"The President, in substance, answered that it was always his wish and 
purpose to hold individuals responsible for their own acts, without any 
reference to the fact that they happened to be members or officers of par- 
ticular Churches ; that the fact of being a member or pastor of a Church was 
no excuse for personal misdemeanor; but that he never intended to assume, 
or to permit his subordinate officers to assume, any power to govern or con- 
trol the churches, or in any manner to determine who may and who may 
not preach and minister in them. You say that you are in the full fruition 
of your civil rights, and the President considers you as free in the enjoy- 
ment of your ecclesiastical rights. I write this with the express permission 
of the President, and I presume to advise that you quietly resume the exer- 
cise of all the rights, duties and functions of your office as if no interrup- 
tion had occurred." 

Sir, I take comfort in all that I have suffered, and can venture to claim 
that I have not been a useless citizen if my case was the occasion of bringing 
out so distinct a declaration of so important a question at so opportune a time. 
If I had yielded to the clamor about disloyalty, and had done what was 
required of me as a condition of being permitted to preach, the sentence 
might have been removed upon personal grounds, but it would have left a 
precedent of incalculable evil. 



266 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



As it is, we have got back to the old doctrine. The citizen is amenable 
to the State, the minister to the Church. The State, for sufficient cause, may 
hang, imprison or banish ; the Church, for sufficient cause, may depose, ex- 
communicate, silence or censure ; but neither State nor Church can under- 
take to administer both classes of punishment, even when both are just, 
much less to administer both when neither is just. 

Thus ended my troubles as far as the State was concerned, and the ques- 
tion immediately arose, what I should do in reference to Pine Street Church ? 
Should I preach in that church or not? Considering the matter, I thought 
there were just two questions to be decided by me — a question of ecclesias- 
tical right and a question of Christian expediency. 

Did I have, ecclesiastically, the right to preach in Pine Street Church ? It 
appeared to me plainly that I did. And on the ground that the appeal 
which had been taken to Synod against the action of St. Louis Presbytery 
dissolving the pastoral relation had by that body been received, declared to be 
in order and docketed for trial — the appeal being entertained by Synod I 
thought, and still think, took the case entirely out of the hands of Presbytery, 
and arrested everything that Presbytery had done until Synod should decide 
the case. The language of the Book of Discipline (chap, vii., sec. iii., para- 
graph xv.) is: "The necessary operation of an appeal is to suspend all 
further proceedings on the ground of the sentence appealed from. But if a 
sentence of suspension or excommunication from Church privileges, or de- 
position from office, be the sentence appealed from, it shall be considered as 
in force until the appeal shall be issued." The sentence appealed from in 
this was none of these, but the dissolution of the pastoral relation, and, 
therefore, the sentence was not "in force until the appeal was issued;" and 
if it was not in force I was pastor of Pine Street Church while the case was 
sub judice; and in my judgment the soundness of this conclusion is not 
affected by the question whether Synod did or did not do right in entertain- 
ing the appeal, or whether an appeal would or would not be, in such a case, 
right or wrong ; it was the decision of Synod, and I had a right to act under 
it. Presbytery could no more set it aside than I could the action of Pres- 
bytery. 

But with the ecclesiastical right in my hands, it was still a grave question 
of Christian expediency what I ought to do. This matter I tried to look at 
fairly and conscientiously. I weighed the matter in my mind for two weeks, 
notwithstanding urgent solicitations to decide it at once. My complaint sets 
forth with sufficient distinctness the reasons that determined me to return to 



\ 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 267 

my pulpit. I put them in my complaint, that the members of Presbytery 
might have an opportunity of knowing them and canvassing them. I will 
only recapitulate them here : 

1. In a Session of seven, six Elders urged me to this course. 

2. The Standing Committee of Session to secure supplies invited me to 
preach. The action of Presbytery had been a simple dissolution of the pas- 
toral relation, at least so it appeared upon its minutes. 

3. The Church, by a very large majority, I knew, and it will not be 
denied, desired me to preach. The interest of the Church seemed to de- 
mand that I should do so. The congregation was in danger of scattering. 
They were without preaching. In the peculiar circumstances of the Church 
it was almost impossible to get a supply. An effort had been made; a 
most excellent brother had come as a supply for a short time during my disa- 
bility, and while he was received kindly by all parties, he could not be 
induced to remain. This must be the case until Synod shall meet. 

4. I was urged by a number of gentlemen of prominence in the commu- 
nity — none of them members of my Church, and some of them not members 
of any Church, but all of them anxious that the position of the President 
in relation to the Church should be known — immediately to resume my 
labors as the speediest way of undoing the wrong that had been done ; and 
as I was then convinced that the President had never sanctioned what the 
military had done, and as the interests of the Church seemed to require me 
to return to my pulpit, this had no small influence with me. 

5. As to the minority in the Church, there had been an important change 
in its relation to the Church. True, I knew some were determined to stay 
and fight it out, but several families of the most influence in the minority, 
before my military sentence was removed, had taken pews in other churches, 
and expressed the determination to have nothing more to do with the mat- 
ter. Others showed a disposition to return, and expressed themselves sat- 
isfied, and received me cordially as their pastor ; and still a larger part of 
the minority, and that a very active and bitter part, without any reference 
to me, and when they thought I would not be permitted to preach during 
the war, had made arrangements to establish a Mission Church in a distant 
part of the city. They had a minister on the ground, they had once applied 
for their certificates of dismission to organize the Church, but withdrew the 
request, and will certainly take them as soon as they are no longer needed 
as a reserve force to carry on the contest in the Church. 

Looking at all the circumstances, I judged it my duty to do what I did — 



268 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



return to my pulpit until the case was decided. I had the right to do so. 
I judged it expedient. It was painful to me to stand in such a relation to 
those who so bitterly denounced me and so wrongly accused me. My con- 
gregations were good, although but few of the minority attended. That few 
will do me the justice to admit that I made their stay as pleasant as I could ; 
that I never alluded in sermon or prayer in an offensive way to our Church 
troubles. 

When Presbytery met last month they passed the action against which I 
am here to complain. 

I have complained of it as hasty, harsh and most unjust, and as passed 
when not only the representatives of Pine Street Church and myself, but a 
large number of the members of Presbytery were prevented, by reason of a 
military order with which we could not with a good conscience comply. 

The action was hasty; no proper inquiry was made into the facts upon 
which Presbytery was called to act. All that Presbytery heard was from 
two members of the committee of Presbytery, neither of whom had ever 
had a word of conversation with me or with any member of the Session of 
Pine Street Church, except the memorialist, on the subject; neither of whom 
probably knew that the matter was coming up before Presbytery, and both 
of whom had voted to dissolve the pastoral relation. Now this, and an ex 
parte statement from the Elder who drew up the memorial, was all that 
Presbytery heard — it was all they seemed to desire to hear. They have from 
the beginning shown a strange indifference to hearing me, an indifference 
that I have thought amounted to a reluctance. They voted down a resolu- 
tion to refer the matter to their own committee ; and this reason is said to 
have been given by a member of Presbytery, now a member of this body, 
that it would not do to delay action, as the party in the Church favorable to 
me was gaining strength every day, and it would soon be too late, or words 
to that effect. At any rate the matter was dispatched as if no time was to 
be lost. 

This action I complain of as harsh. The memorial of nine members of 
the Church, which is made a part of the record of Presbytery, in addition 
to a false statement about the number who had left the Church,* charges 
me with "want of submission to Presbytery;" " with encouraging a revo- 

*The memorial sent to Presbytery, which was signed only by nine members, 
claims 11 nearly a hundred. " The six members of Session, in their complaint to 
Assembly, say, after a careful examination of the roll, allowing- all the names the 
minority can possibly claim, that it is about fifty. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



269 



lutionary, contumacious spirit," and ' ' preventing a Christian spirit from 
being shown;" with 1 ' gathering members to the Church (some of whom 
joined upon profession of faith, and all of whom joined without solicitation 
upon my part), more from a desire to aid in a party triumph than from any 
desire to build up the Church of Christ." And the action of Presbytery is 
based upon and apparently endorses the statements, and does it without 
hearing me, without any evidence that would have satisfied impartial men 
that they were true, and when in fact they were false and libelous. Mode- 
rator, I ask the Assembly, what is a minister's character worth if such pro- 
ceedings are allowed ? I ask them to compare the course of St. Louis 
Presbytery with the solemn words of our noble Standards — Dis. ch. V., 
§ I : "As the honor and success of the gospel depends in a great measure 
on the character of its ministers, each Presbytery ought, with the greatest 
care and impartiality, to watch over the personal and professional conduct 
of all its ministers. But as, on the one hand, no minister ought, on 
account of his office, to be screened from the hand of justice, nor his 
offenses to be slightly censured, so neither ought scandalous charges be 
received against him by a judicatory on slight grounds." And yet St. 
Louis Presbytery received such charges against me, from a man whom they 
could not but know that I regarded as so hostile to me as to be incapable of 
doing me justice ; and they receive them not as a ground of charges to be 
investigated, but as things true and a ground of action, and spread the me- 
morial in full upon their minutes, without one word to show that they did 
not fully endorse them ; and I appeal to every one if this is not the impres- 
sion that memorial and action will make on those who come after us. 

The haste and harshness of this proceeding is aggravated by its gross 
injustice. If the action of the Synod of Missouri, in receiving the appeal 
and declaring it to be in order, suspended the effect of their action, what 
right had they to censure me ? I do not argue the question, whether the 
Synod ought to have received an appeal in such a case. It is not necessary 
that I should, and I do not wish to take the time. If it comes up, I wish 
some member of the House would take the pains to examine it in the light 
of the recorded facts of this case, and I venture the assertion, that if he 
comes to the conclusion that an appeal does not lie in this case, he will, at 
the same time, have to admit that in the Presbyterian Church fractions of 
Presbyteries may commit the grossest outrages upon the rights of pastors 
and Churches, for which there is no adequate remedy until the remedy is 
too late. My position, however, is : Admit that Synod was mistaken, 



270 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



erroneous, violated the Constitution, St. Louis Presbytery was not the 
body to correct the mistake or interpret the Constitution for Synod ; that the 
action of Synod should have protected me from the censure of Presbytery, 
and that Presbytery are liable to censure for so harsh an action, which was 
unjust in itself and unjust in them to administer. 

And this injustice is accompanied by another act of the grossest injustice, 
which characterized all the proceedings of Presbytery from first to last, viz. : 
permitting an Elder of my Church — a man known to be most hostile to me — 
in long speeches, by direct statements, by insinuations, and by all the means 
a perverted ingenuity can invent, to make charges against me of matters 
connected with my duties as a citizen, which, if they mean any thing that a 
Church court should hear at all, are crimes that the court was bound to try, 
and for which I should be punished if I am guilty. This I feel to be utterly 
intolerable, and for which I have a right to look for redress. 

I ask the Assembly to look at another point which I make in my complaint. 
Synod received the appeal and complaint against the dissolution of the pastoral 
relation, declared it to be in order, and docketed it for trial. What right 
had St. Louis Presbytery to decide that Synod would not take the matter 
up as an appeal ? The fact is, Synod did receive it as an appeal and not a 
member of St. Louis Presbytery objected; but if an appeal, the book de- 
clares "the necessary effect is to suspend all further proceeding on the 
ground of the sentence appealed from," except in specified cases, of which 
this is not one. But this action of Presbytery is " further proceedings on the 
ground of the sentence appealed from; " the original minute is, "Resolved, 
that the request of Pine Street Church be granted and the pastoral rela- 
tion dissolved;" and now Presbytery go on and add an additional sentence, 
that I shall not, even if invited by the Session, preach in the pulpit of Pine 
Street Church. Now, sir, I hold that the entertaining of the appeal by 
Synod took the case entirely out of the hands of Presbytery ; that the dis- 
solution of the pastoral relation was not operative until Synod should issue 
the case ; that if the higher court should sustain the appeal no new instal- 
ment would be necessary, and, therefore, that Presbytery, on the grounds 
of the action of June 23, had no right to prohibit me from exercising the 
functions of a minister to Pine Street Church ; and this position, I contend, 
is not affected by the fact whether Synod ought or ought not to have received 
the appeal, for that was not a question for Presbytery, but for a higher court 
to decide. 

Now, sir, I only add, in aggravation of the injustice and wrong of Pres- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



271 



bytery toward me, that the action would not have passed had not the mem- 
bers of Presbytery been prevented from attending by the military order, 
which required conditions with which we say with a good conscience 
we could not comply. I shall not argue this matter at all. If any one 
can not see why some of us refuse to attend ecclesiastical courts upon 
the conditions imposed in this order, I know that I am powerless to 
show him what my scruples are. I have no trouble about taking an oath, 
for I have taken an oath which the military say is sufficient. But I have 
trouble about taking any oath as a condition of sitting in an ecclesiastical 
court. I have trouble in refusing a member of an ecclesiastical court his 
seat until I inquire if he has taken an oath. I have trouble in rejecting him 
if he has all the qualifications which the Church requires, even if he wants 
qualifications which this order requires. I have trouble in an ecclesiastical 
court in any way enforcing a military order. These troubles and scruples 
are none of them removed by the fact that I am thoroughly convinced that 
the end aimed at in this order was an end which the military authorities were 
bound in some way to effect — namely, to prevent bodies of men of influence 
from meeting and acting in a way injurious to the State, if they have any 
reason to suspect that such bodies of men are about to meet. I am more- 
over convinced that there was no purpose on the part of the military authori- 
ties to interfere with the liberties of the Church. I will say, moreover, that 
I can not and do not blame the military authorities, in States where there is 
a division of sentiment upon the vital national questions convulsing the 
country, for suspecting ecclesiastical courts. It seems to me the Church has 
brought this evil upon herself ; for if Church courts, when their members 
approve of the action of Government, have a right as a Church court to say 
so, the argument is near at hand that those who disapprove may feel that 
they have a right to express their disapprobation. Why should not the 
military conclude they will ? If Church courts will " handle and conclude " 
"civil affairs which concern the Commonwealth," then an inexorable logic 
compels me to admit the Commonwealth has a right to know what they are 
handling and how they conclude them. I can not see why, if the Church, 
as she has, comes in and takes part in the affairs of the State, that the 
State should not come in and take part in the affairs of the Church. I am 
honestly convinced that all that I object to in this order is owing to the un- 
fortunate way in which a legitimate end was sought to be attained. If the- 
ologians should undertake to write orders affecting the movements of armies, 
they would be in great danger of entangling them in hopeless confusion ; 



272 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



and it is equally difficult for any military man to make orders about Churches 
or Church courts which will not throw them into confusion. But all this 
does not relieve the difficulty when the thing required is felt to be something 
which it offends conscience to do. The whole subject is full of difficulty and 
perplexity. The only practical solution that I know is, for those who can 
not comply with orders that are thought to be necessary, to make a respectful 
petition for a removal of what they regard as a grievance ; and if this can 
not be had, quietly to remain at home until matters right themselves or the 
orders are reversed. This, I say, seems to me the only practical way of at 
once obeying the order and keeping a good conscience. I am glad, how- 
ever, that this whole subject is beginning to attract attention and awaken 
discussion. The thing to be settled are the principles that underlie the 
whole question. And permit me to say, that while those of us who are in 
circumstances most to be affected by the apparent collision between Church 
and State are glad to see the matter discussed, some of us greatly regret that 
any of our Church papers have made, as nearly all of them have, the 
religious sentiments of the Commanding General a part of the argument, 
as though his being a Roman Catholic had induced him to issue this order 
against Protestants. This is most unjust, and I am utterly incapable of 
taking any advantage of the prejudice which such an impression, uncontra- 
dicted, might make in a body of Protestants. There is no evidence what- 
ever that this had any thing to do in the matter. Its terms embrace Roman 
Catholic as well as Protestant assemblies. The fact is, this order, as ex- 
plained, appears to me to bear more heavily upon them than upon any other 
denomination, for it seems to require that all clergymen shall take the oath 
prescribed to those who solemnize matrimony; and as marriage is to the 
Roman Catholic a sacrament, I can well see how he may have difficulties 
which I do not have, for I have no difficulty about taking an oath to qualify 
me to solemnize matrimony; it is, in one aspect of it, a civil contract, which 
I admit the State has a right to regulate ; but if I regarded it as a sacrament 
of Christ's Church, then I would have objections, yes, and very great ob- 
jections, to qualifying myself to perform a sacrament by an oath to the 
State ; and I am free to say if I were a Protestant General I would not 
enforce such an oath upon a Roman Catholic priest, and if I were a Roman 
Catholic priest I would not take it. But what I want to say is, that those 
are looking in altogether the wrong direction who think our troubles come 
from Roman Catholic Generals or any other kind of generals. It comes 
from Protestants — yes, and from Presbyterians — the members of your 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 273 

Churches over whom you have a direct control ; these are the persons who 
have troubled your Churches and pastors. They ask for these orders; they 
urge the military to make them. This order was, I firmly believe, asked 
by one Protestant denomination against another. When St. Louis Presby- 
tery was about to meet, the Provost-Marshal was waited upon by a minister, 
now a commissioner here, and an Elder of my Church, and he was asked 
as a favor to send a deputy to Presbytery to carry out the order. The help 
we ask from this Assembly, the help we think you ought to give us, is to 
make such a deliverance as will show that you disapprove of your Church 
members carrying Church matters before military tribunals for settlement. 
Tell your Church members, when your ministers do things which ministers 
ought not to do to bring the case before the Church court and not before 
military tribunals. This will relieve the military and relieve your ministers. 

I am sorry to have occupied so much time. I would not have come 
before this body with any personal matter. There are principles involved 
in this case which are of vital interest to many of your Churches, and, in 
concluding, I will state distinctly what they are : Besides the purely eccle- 
siastical questions in this case, there is the question, how far you will ap- 
prove of the members of the Church invoking military authority to control 
your Churches ? And another question is, what limits does the Presbyterian 
Church allow to its pastors, who, from conscientious convictions of duty, 
have stood aloof in the pulpit and pastorate from the civil contest now deso- 
lating the land ? This, after all, underlies my whole case. This, all parties 
will agree, has created the trouble in Pine Street Church. And if such a 
question is to come up, it is hardly possible it should come so free from side 
issues. If I am in error on this matter, it is an error of long standing. 
My record runs back to the beginning of my ministry. I have not taken 
it with reference to these troubles. I have only adhered to a life long rule 
in these times. My conduct has been consistent, uniform, and is the result 
of conscientious conviction. This every one knows who knows me at all. 

I do not wish to make any false impressions. I will give you frankly my 
position : As a citizen I have done, and expect to continue to do, all duties 
enjoined upon me by the Word of God, and that Word I interpret by the 
standards of our Church. As a minister, and in my pulpit, I have not 
taken, and do not expect to take, any part in our civil contest. I do not 
ask any member of this Assembly to say that my course in this respect 
meets his approval — that he would have acted as I have. But I do ask you 
if you will undertake to compel me to do in this matter what with a good 
18 



274 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



conscience I tell you I can not do, or to punish me for not having done it ? 
Is it a sine qua non in the Presbyterian Church that your ministers, as 
such, must take an active part in our national struggle ? I ask you to leave 
me the freedom and Christian liberty which the Standards of our Church 
give me. 

I admit most fully that Christian congregations have the same liberty on 
this class of subjects that I claim for myself and accord to others. If my 
Church insisted on my pursuing a different course, I would not have been 
here with any complaint about a dissolution of the pastoral relation. But 
on that subject my Church are satisfied. Every Elder but one, the whole 
body of the deacons and the great majority of the communicants — those who 
built the Church, those who sustain it, those without whom it will not be 
self-sustaining* — tell you, in all the forms they can, that they are satisfied. 
This Assembly will have to come in and say I shall not minister to them 
because, as a minister, I stand aloof from this civil strife. Of course, the 
same principle that applies to me in my present charge applies to me every 
where. If I am separated from this Church I ought not to be installed over 
any other Church. 

Moderator, this seems to me to be the principle that is involved and the 
question that will be decided. I neither ask nor desire the Assembly to let 
their decision be influenced by any consideration but the consideration of 
what is right. The Presbyterian Church can well afford to do without my 
services in any of her churches ; the question is, can she afford to declare 
the principle she will declare in practically throwing me out of her ministry. 
One more word and I am done. I came up here to complain of St. Louis 
Presbytery. I have made no complaint of any other parties. I have said 
nothing of what the minority in my Church have done. I want the Pres- 
bytery to have the fullest and ablest defense, and I care not who makes it. 
It may be by members of Presbytery or by any other person they may 
choose to have, though not a member of Presbytery, if you judge proper to 
allow it ; but I wish to remind the members of that Presbytery that charges 
and insinuations against me as a "disloyal man" is no part of their defense. 
If I am disloyal in any sense that should have any injurious effect upon my 

*It was stated in the complaint of members of Session to the Assembly, that the 
report made by the Treasurer of Pine Street Church to the committee of Presbytery 
appointed to look into its condition shows that in a period of nine years the average 
contributions of the whole minority, covering all the current expenses of the 
Church, such as liquidation of Church debt, pew rents, repairs of the church and inci- 
dental expenses, amounted to less than $400 a year. The same report shows that 
the entire pecuniary interest they have in the Church property is $1,825. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



2 75 



case before this court, I am guilty not only of crime, but perjury ; and when 
I am tried for this crime I want it done upon charges regularly tabled. I 
want the evidence not in loose statements and insinuations and patriotic 
speeches, but as testimony under oath. I want to have an opportunity to 
examine the testimony. The very grossest of all the wrongs done me has 
been that my Presbytery has listened to statements made about me which 
those who made them would not have dared to make tinder oath. For 
nearly two years I have asked again and again if any man has anything to 
allege against me as a Christian citizen that is criminal according to the 
teaching of God's Word or our standards, that he will make his charge and 
produce his witness. Now, sir, what I have asked as a defiance of my 
accusers, I demand as a right of this Assembly ; and if you hear any state- 
ments made or any insinuations thrown out that leaves the impression on 
your minds that I am guilty of such an offense, or that raises doubts in your 
minds, that you order St. Louis Presbytery to take that matter up and issue 
the case. I thank the Assembly for the patience and attention w r ith which 
they have listened to me, and I hope they may be guided by God's Spirit to 
a wise and just decision. 

After Mr. Strong concluded, fifteen minutes were allowed 
Dr. McPheeters to correct misstatements made by Mr. Strong. 

Moderator : The Assembly can now see why I objected to statements 
affecting my character not made under the solemnity of an oath. You have 
heard for seven hours the speech of a lawyer accustomed to an ingenious 
working up of evidence and facts to suit his purposes. He has gone over 
the history of the war in Missouri. He has pretended to state facts de- 
signed to prejudice your minds and cast suspicion upon the character of 
members of my Church; he has thrown out insinuations and made infer- 
ences, blending things true and not true, as suited him. I began to take 
notes of his misstatements ; I have a sheet full before me. I can not in 
the time allowed take them up one by one and refute them. I can give you 
but a specimen of one or two which I will take just as they are noted. He 
says the fate of Fort Sumpter was announced with exultation by a member 
of Pine Street Church, a friend of mine, and Mr. Strong knows that this 
has been publicly denied, over his own signature, by the gentleman accused. 
It served a purpose to state the charge and omit the denial. He says a 
letter found in a "captured rebel mail bag" speaks of Dr. McPheeters as 
giving great comfort to known traitors, or words to that effect. The letter 



276 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



alluded to was published, and it was evident from the letter that the Dr. 
McPheeters was in the South, and was a doctor of medicine. This, I say, 
was manifest in the letter, but Mr. Strong has no scruples about stating it 
here and leaving you to believe that I was the person. This is his man- 
ner, and the reason I want him to make his statements under oath. 

Again, he says I baptized a child named Sterling Price, dressed in 
"rebel colors," &c, &c. Mr. S. says he was not there. I was, and saw 
no rebel colors, and I do not believe there were any. As to the baptism, 
I administered just as the Directory of Worship appoints. I name my own 
children and other people name theirs. I was not consulted as to the name, 
and had no more responsibilty than the Clerk of Sessions who recorded it. 
But I can not waste my time on points like these. The Assembly will notice 
that Mr. Strong attacks every one who differs from him, as "disloyal." 
The Session is disloyal, the body of Pine Street Church is disloyal, Synod is 
disloyal. In Missouri we are accustomed to this. There are men who set 
themselves up as standards, and if you differ from them they denounce you 
as "disloyal." Mr. Strong has had a great deal to say about my not 
coming out and giving my views about the war, when he and a few others 
made the demand of me to which I alluded in my first speech. It seems 
from what he now says that the Provost- Marshal had determined to arrest 
me upon my return from Columbus for what I did in the Assembly ; that 
he endorsed me as "loyal," and begged him not to arrest me, promising 
him if he would not that when I came back he would get from me a state- 
ment that would satisfy the Provost- Marshal. Hence his letter to me. It 
was to satisfy the Provost- Marshal that he got up his letter, addressed to 
me as pastor of Pine Street Church, asking my views of the war. Well, 
sir, instead of such an uncandid course as this, why did he not come to me 
and frankly tell me how the case stood, and let me have some little choice as 
to the way in which I would act in the premises. Instead of that he under- 
takes to draw from me, as pastor, a written statement of my views of the 
war. He was aiming at one thing and I at another. He was determined to 
get something to satisfy the Provost-Marshal, and I was determined, as a 
pastor, to keep free from all entanglement with political and civil matters. 
What a world of trouble a little manly frankness would have saved. 

This explains what I did not understand at the time of the correspon- 
dence . Mr. Strong, just before his letter, came to me twice and asked me 
to go to the Provisional Governor of Missouri and make favorable mention of 
him as a suitable person to be appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 277 

the State, and while, for reasons which I gave him, I never did as requested, 
yet it seemed to me very strange that he should make such a request if he 
thought me so notoriously a bad citizen as to injure my character as a 
Christian minister! 

One more point and I am done. Mr. Strong has told you that he saw 
the original order against me before it was issued, and he has also told you 
that he accepted, " though with reluctance," the office of Chairman of the 
Military Commission to manage Pine Street Church and selected his asso- 
ciates ! He tells you, too, that he went to Washington to prevent the order 
being revoked. And he, an Elder in that Church, and under solemn vows 
to God to study the peace, purity and unity of the Church ! Yes, he vol- 
unteers to tell this Assembly that he gave the military authorities his hand 
to lay upon the kingly crown of Christ ! Sir, I knew all this before, but I 
did not think it proper to introduce it. But do you wonder that I resisted 
and protested against these things when done by office-bearers in the Church ? 
Do you wonder there is trouble in a Presbyterian Church when these things 
are done ? He has himself told you the whole story. He was behind that 
order; what was done was done with his knowledge and consent.* 

*Mr. Strong drafted the original order of December 19. This was perfectly plain 
from internal evidence, and was afterward publicly stated by him in a meeting of 
the Church. His statement was substantially this : The order was shown him; he 
regarded the language as too severe and asked the privilege of mitigating its harsh- 
ness . It was granted to him , and he wrote the order as it was issued . This explains 
everything I 



278 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



CHAPTER XV. 

REMARKS OF DRS. RICE, JUNKIN, MUSGRAVE AND SCHENCK 

ASSEMBLY'S DECISION THE DECISION REVIEWED. 

As the speeches of Hon. William T. Wood and Rev. Dr. 
McPheeters have been reported in full, it will not be without 
interest to record the sentiments which were expressed by 
certain members of the Assembly who looked at the case of 
Dr. McPheeters from opposite points of view. 

Dr. N. L. Rice said — 

He desired to specify certain peculiarities of this case, as it had been 
conducted before the Assembly, and which made it unlike any thing ever 
heard of in adjudication. 

The first is, we have heard a memorialist in this case and given him all 
the rights of an original party. The like never occurred before in the history 
of our Church, and it presented the case in a very peculiar light. 

The second peculiarity is, that we have virtually a minister on trial — 
virtually on trial ; visited, too, with the severest penalties that could result 
from a trial ; and yet he is on trial without charges, without citation, without 
specifications tabled, without a list of witnesses ; in short, without any of 
those formalities and precautions by which our Constitution guards the sacred 
rights of accused ministers. Ah, sir, it is a sad state of things when a 
minister can be put on trial for his character and ministerial life without 
allowing him any of the means of protecting himself that the Constitution 
guarantees. 

Third peculiarity : This high Court of Appeal has heard a large amount 
of statement of parties as if it were testimony, and have heard many 
documents read which are not matter of record. Now, a Court of Appeal 
can not, without violating our Constitution, hear any documents that are not 
matter of record ; and if the record is incomplete, this is not the place to 
complete it; it must be sent back to the lower court to be completed. He 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



2 79 



felt that he was, perhaps, to blame for not trying to arrest this irregularity; 
but at the time he thought best not to do it, for one effort in that direction 
had met with ill success. He lamented that a Court of Jesus Christ had 
permitted such a course, and by it so involved and embarrassed the case. 
We are called upon to decide upon statements made upon both sides — 
statements made and contradicted — unsupported by testimony given under 
sanction of an oath ; statements neither proved nor disproved. We have 
permitted the absent to be assailed in these statements. We have been told 
that a large majority of the ministers of the Synod of Missouri are disloyal, 
and, of course, immoral. The whole process is unprecedented. Never 
are we in greater danger than when we are trying to get at a good end and 
are unscrupulous about the means of reaching it. He illustrated this by the 
ill-advised arrangement called "The Plan of Union" of 1801. The end 
seemed desirable; the means had well nigh proved disastrous. He would 
not go into a discussion of the military order requiring men to take a certain 
oath in order to qualify for a seat in ecclesiastical bodies. It was certain 
that many good men could not take that oath. Had he been there he might 
have taken it; but when he went to Presbytery he was bound by a previous 
oath to go into Presbytery by our Book. One principle involved in this 
case is, the validity of a Presbytery and of its action when a majority of the 
body were not there through restraint. Wise and good men could not take 
the oath as a qualification to attend Presbytery; they thought it compromised 
their rights of conscience, -and the Presbytery should have been very careful 
what they did under such circumstances. 

The real charge brought against Dr. McPheeters was disloyalty. On 
this the opposition of the minority of his Church was based ; on this the 
allegation of loss of usefulness was founded ; on this charge the Presbytery 
proceeded. This is manifest in all the pleadings there and in all the 
pleadings here. This was a charge affecting his moral character, for 
disloyalty is a sin. Had the Presbytery a right to punish him for this sin 
and to fix this blot upon his character without arraigning him, tabling 
charges and giving him an opportunity of defense ? Suppose Mr. Strong 
had come up before Presbytery saying, ' ' My pastor has been guilty of 
dishonesty, or my pastor has been drunk, and I w T ant you not to try him 
for drunkenness, but to dissolve his pastoral relation ; for after being drunk 
he can not be useful in the Church of Pine street." Would the Presbytery 
have listened to him ? Would they have ventured to dissolve his pastoral 
relation on the rumor that he had been drunk, without ascertaining the facts 



28o 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



by a fair and legal trial ? Would they have dissolved the relation and yet 
left the minister in good standing — praised, even, as a godly and excellent 
man ? No, sir. And yet this is just what they did. They entertained this 
charge affecting his moral character, assumed its truth without citation, trial 
or testimony ; fastened the charge upon him, spotted him and dissolved his 
pastoral relation ; substantially deposed him from his pastorate, yet pretended 
not to touch his good standing as a minister ; left him, as they say, in good 
and regular standing. If Presbytery believed that he was disloyal, they 
should have tried him and given him the usual opportunity of defense. 
They did not go far enough if the charge is well founded; if he was loyal they 
have gone too far. In either case the Presbytery was wrong. A Church 
court is bound to protect its humblest member against false accusations, and 
no man is to be assumed to be guilty without trial and proof. He (Dr. Rice) 
was unwilling to have the world scoff at us for having ministers in good and 
regular standing, yet so spotted by the act of their brethren that they can not 
be asked to preach in our pulpits. If we sustain the Presbytery in this act, 
who would dare to ask Dr. McPheeters to his pulpit ? They have inflicted 
upon him, to all intents and purposes, the extreme sentence of ecclesiastical 
law, and yet have never given him a trial. 

In times of excitement like these words lose their definitions. What is 
the extent of the words loyal and loyalty? It is difficult to get the same 
answer from any two men. To illustrate: A tew years ago he (Dr. Rice) 
was charged with being an abolitionist by one class of men, and by another 
class with being pro-slavery; and both charges were based upon the grounds 
of the same publication. Dr. McPheeters did not declare his loyalty to 
Mr. Strong's satisfaction. He (Dr. Rice) did not know whether that 
brother is loyal or not. That was what the Presbytery ought to have found 
out before they punished him. When asked upon the subject, he said he 
had taken an oath of allegiance and kept it. This was enough up to the 
point at which they were ready to try him. What more did they want ? 
The great .principle which lies at the foundation of the unity of the Church 
is this : that the degree of unity of faith and practice required for membership 
is that which is specified in the Confession of Faith, Government and 
Discipline of the Church. The terms of membership are all inside of the 
Book ; all outside of it does not belong to the terms of union and communion. 
Dr. Breckinridge believes in the pre-millennial advent of Christ ; the speaker 
does not. We must be left to do as we please in regard to matters outside 
of the Book ; if not, the terms of communion are violated and the unity of 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



28l 



the Church destroyed. You must alter the Book before you can punish me 
for what is outside of it. Where there is no law there is no transgression. 
If the man who charges this brother with wrong can prove that he has 
preached or done what this Book forbids, or refused to preach or do what 
it requires, let him do it and his case is made out. But you can not convict 
him, as a minister and a Presbyterian, of crime unless the Book by which 
he has agreed to be tried pronounces it a crime ; nor can you convict him 
of what it does condemn without proof. The question is : Has the minister 
done any thing contrary to our Book and to the Word of God? If it is 
proved that he has, then punish ; not before. Take the position, you must 
come up to my standard or I will denounce you, and the peace of the 
Church is gone. Take the position that a Presbytery can fix a standard 
unknown to our Book, and terms of communion not found in it, and the 
unity of the Church is destroyed. If the Assembly should command him 
(Dr. Rice) outside of this Book, he would not obey. 

If there is anything about this man, personally, the Presbytery can take it 
up in an orderly way ; but they have no right to spot him as a disloyal, u e. t 
an immoral man, without a trial. Sustain the action of the St. Louis Pres- 
bytery and where is the Church that will have him ? You really depose 
him from the ministry. Take my liberty, take my property, said Dr. Rice, 
but do not kill my ministerial character ! Send this thing back to the Pres- 
bytery, and if they find him disloyal, let them go farther; if not, let them 
not go so far. 

If a man can stand the ordeal of a military vigilance for a year or more, 
the hue and cry of popular clamor, and the jealousy of public suspicion, 
with an Elder after him all the time, pursuing him even to strange cities, he 
must be pure indeed if he stand the test. But this brother has done it. 
No fault has been proven, and he is found a pure man, even his enemies 
being judges. 

Why, sir, Dr. Hodge, in the Assembly of 1 86 1, took quite as strong 
ground as Dr. McPheeters has ever taken in favor of non-intervention of the 
Church in political matters. Is he disloyal? The Synod of Kentucky 
passed strong resolutions against such interference, Dr. R. J. Breckinridge 
taking the lead in them, Is Dr. Breckinridge disloyal ? If a man can 
speak seven hours with entire license to say what he pleased, as Mr. Strong 
did, and yet not adduce the remotest proof or make any show of a case 
against his pastor's loyalty, it is surely evidence that the case is not very 
capable of being made. 



282 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



But we must not forget there was one astounding proof: he baptized a 
baby by the name of " Sterling Price ! " True, he did not know it before- 
hand — he had not the naming of the child ; and because, in the midst of the 
baptismal sacrament, he did not back out at the name he is disloyal to his 
country! If the name had been Beelzebub it might hardly have been 
proper to falter. And yet such are the things relied upon to destroy this 
man's ministerial character for loyalty, together with the moving fact that 
this Elder lay with a pistol under his head, and that this woman had said so, 
and that woman had said something else ! 

He (Dr. Rice) did not know whether Dr. McPheeters was loyal or not, 
but he held him so till it was proved otherwise; and until it is proved that 
he is guilty he would defend him. God forbid that he should vote to stop 
the mouth of a minister whose opponents declare him to be a pure, holy, 
zealous and humble Christian, and an able minister of the Word. Prove 
his disloyalty, and he would go further than the Presbytery went. 

He would briefly notice another point. This pro-re-nata meeting was 
called "to consider and redress grievances." Called at whose request? — 
that of the pastor or of the congregation ? Neither ; but by outsiders — minis- 
ters without charges and Elders of other Churches. If Pine Street Church 
had grievances, Pine Street Church could say so; but outsiders had no right 
to come in and ask for such a meeting. The result was reached by a gross 
irregularity, and by such outside interference as no respectable Church in the 
land would endure. Presbytery called to break a tie which those most 
interested did not wish broken! Sir, I do not know how I should feel 
with the military arm pressing me on one side, and my brethren, who ought 
to protect me, pressing me on the other ; but I doubt whether I might have 
passed the ordeal as well as this brother. 

The phrase, "grant the request of the Church," is a clerical error, it is 
said, and doubtless is, for the Church made no such request; and Mr. 
Strong got himself appointed Commissioner by the residue of the meeting 
at a late hour in the night, after the majority had withdrawn. The whole 
proceeding was irregular and unheard of. Now, finally, came the full 
release from disability from the President of the United States. Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters was there. He had no place else to go. He had a right to preach; 
the Session had a right to ask him to preach. The pulpit had never been 
formally declared vacant. The Presbytery had never forbidden him to 
preach. He was urged to enter upon duty ; he did so, and then the Pres- 
bytery came down upon him with this prohibition to minister there, of which 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 283 

he here complains. Moderator, it is a very serious question whether you 
will conciliate that Church and secure for our action the confidence and 
respect of men by approving such a series of blunders. 

Dr. Musgrave said : " I fully justify the Government in all they have done 
in the way of military arrests, orders and restraints. ... I approve of 
the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus " &c. 

Dr. Schenck remarked : " Had I been in Missouri I would cheerfully 
have taken the oath, and I can perceive no good reason why every minister 
in the Presbytery of St. Louis should not have done so." 

Dr. George Junkin, who, in the Assembly of 1862, had co-operated with 
Dr. Breckinridge, now returns to sounder and more constitutional views. 
He said "that most of the points to which he would have spoken had been 
anticipated by Dr. Rice, and made so clear that he (Dr. Junkin) would not 
touch upon them. A few others he would notice. He considered the prin- 
ciples involved in this case to be of transcendent importance — principles for 
which our Presbyterian ancestors in North Britain long struggled, even 
under the cruelty of a Charles and the claymore of a Claverhouse — princi- 
ples for which the men who fought under the "Banner of the Blue" con- 
tended to the death. The rights of Christ's crown and the stipulations of 
His covenant were involved in this case. And whilst he considered Dr. 
McPheeters politically wrong, he was ecclesiastically right. The speaker 
would not have done as his brother McPheeters had done in regard to civil 
affairs. In his capacity of citizen he would have been so prompt to let his 
decided adherence to the Government be known that no one would have 
asked the minister questions upon the subject. But one man's conscience is 
not the guide of another man's actions. Dr. McPheeters' course was marked 
out by his own peculiar views of duty, and in these even his enemies give 
him credit for sincerity and conscientiousness. If, as a citizen, he erred in not 
displaying zeal enough for the Government — if even his secret sympathies 
were with the land of his birth, and his political creed was not orthodox 
(but these have never been proven to have been so) — if all that his pursuers 
have suspected was capable of proof — that was a question for the military 
tribunals, not for the ecclesiastical; and he was answerable to the military 
power — not in his official capacity as a minister of Christ (unless he had 
used his office to the detriment of the State, which is not pretended), but he 
was answerable in his civil capacity as a member of the Commonwealth. 

They might ask the man for his political opinions, and concerning his 
civil derelictions ; they had no right to ask the minister, unless it was alleged 



284 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



that he had prostituted his pulpit to the injury of the State — a thing not 
pretended, much less proved. It was Erastianism — Erastianism of the direst 
type — the Erastianism of the sword, to punish the tninister for the imagined 
political errors of the man ; whilst the man, the citizen.) was left to all his 
civil franchises. Sir, it is amazing that logical minds can ?iot, and that 
religious minds will not, see this distinction, so important in its bearings 
upon the question of religious liberty and the rights of conscience ! He 
thanked God that we had a President at the head of our Government who 
understands the principles of religious liberty, the rights of conscience, and 
the relations between the Church and State better than some Doctors of 
Divinity with whom he had conversed on this subject. The President saw 
the blunder his subordinates had committed, and, with the perspicacity of a 
clear head and the candor of an honest heart, he applied the remedy. In 
his own pithy and pregnant style he tells his subordinates that he would not 
himself undertake, nor would he permit them, "to run the Churches." 
Would to God the members of this Assembly, and our preachers generally, 
would learn wisdom from that admirable letter of our President; and 
whilst he wisely refrains from " running the Churches," let the Church re- 
frain from attempts to run the State. He deeply regretted that Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters' views of duty had involved him in these distressing^ difficulties. 
But, Moderator, mark these words : when the history of the struggles for 
religious liberty and the rights of conscience in this land is fairly written, 
this suffering man will occupy a position on the roll of its honored cham- 
pions which the best of us may envy ! 

Now, the entire ecclesiastical proceedings, resulting in the substantial 
removal of this confessedly godly, gifted and faithful man Trom the min- 
istry were based upon the military infliction of an ecclesiastical sen- 
tence. Instead of defending this brother against the oppression of the 
hand of military power by entreaty, and such influence as might have 
stayed that hand, his Presbytery made that oppression a pretext for dis- 
solving his pastoral relation. Without being asked by either pastor or 
people they get up a pro-re-nata meeting, worry and perplex this sick, 
nervous and persecuted brother, till, in a moment of almost despera- 
tion, and for fear of involving his brethren and friends, he lays before 
them a resignation. Before they act upon it it is withdrawn. Still 
they worry him, till the withdrawal is, by a friend, withdrawn, without, 
as far as appears, the explicit consent of Dr. McPheeters; and then, 
eleven to nine, they sunder the holiest of earthly ties! This friend, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 285 



it seems, had discretionary instructions, and chose what he supposed 
to be the least of the evils by which the doctor was environed. Thus far 
all had gone on the supposition that he was prevented from preaching by 
military authority. But lo ! it turns out that a half year before the Presi- 
dent had released him from that disability, and that he had been kept out 
of his pulpit really by the insubordination of the military commander at St. 
Louis, who had ventured to refuse obedience to the President's order to 
suspend the sentence, and had retained the sentence in its most offensive 
aspects, in contravention of the President's order. When it is ascertained 
that Mr. Lincoln had intended to remove the prohibition to preach, and Dr. 
McPheeters found himself at liberty to resume his functions as a minister, 
he did resume them, after deliberation and at the request of his Session 
and the Church. Then the Presbytery come upon him again, at the suit 
of this Elder, and forbid him to preach. The plea is still disloyalty; 
although the President had decided that question and was satisfied. Caesar 
was satisfied of the man's loyalty, and from the highest chair of power had 
set him free ; but Mr. Strong was not satisfied, and his ministerial brethren 
in Christ were not satisfied, and he must be banished from his pulpit, from 
the bosom of a trusting and loving people, and "spotted" and sick sent 
forth a wanderer — whither ? Ah ! sir, Dr. Rice has well said, that there 
is for him no home on earth if this General Assembly sanctions such mon- 
strosities. 

The Church had a right, as they had not been formally declared vacant, 
to ask him to preach. The Presbytery had not silenced him. By preach- 
ing he violated no law of the Church and could not violate any law of the 
State. Why must this Presbytery pursue him still with the action against 
which this complaint is now before us ? 

Sir, what have we lived to see and hear ? What had we witnessed in 
this sacred place and in this venerable General Assembly ? Discussions 
of what ? Of the great interests of Christ's kingdom ? No, sir ; but dis- 
cussions of State measures — of political questions — compliments of one 
General, and detractions from another ; and these political harangues ap- 
plauded to the echo in the house of God ! Is it seemly, sir ? He loved his 
country dearly — was an extremist in his devotion to the maintenance of her 
Union and her nationality ; but he loved Christ's blood-bought Church still 
more dearly, and deplored to see her courts converted into a political arena. 
Can we not, as men and as citizens, do our duty .to our country, and as 
Church-members and ministers, do our duty to our Church ? Why join 



286 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



together what God has placed asunder ? "Why allow ourselves to be forced 
by popular clamor to do things as members of this Assembly that might 
be very proper for us to do as members of a political convention, but which 
are out of place here ? It requires moral courage, but we are the men who 
ought to have it. Christ never decided questions of a purely political char- 
acter, although often urged to do it. When asked, is it lawful to give 
tribute to Caesar ? his answer was, " Render to Caesar the things that are 
Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." But did he go into detail, 
and decide what were the things to be rendered to Caesar ? That was the 
thing his enemies wanted him to do, yet that was the very thing that he 
refused to do. He repeatedly declared that his kingdom is not of this 
world, else would his servants fight; and when asked to decide a question 
of inheritance, he refused to do so — " Who made me a divider !" He stood 
cautiously aloof from local and political questions, and contented himself 
with laying dow'n those general principles which are to control all the issues 
of life. We are safe in imitating his example. The union of the State and 
the Church has, in all ages, under all religions and forms of government, 
and in all lands, been the prolific fountain of the most horrible monstrosi- 
ties known to history, and our fathers wisely aimed to keep them distinctly 
separate ; but we are drifting rapidly in the direction of an indiscriminate 
mixture of things, sacred and secular. 

And, now, let the verdict of this ecclesiastical court be given 
in the Assembly's own words : 

DECISION OF THE ASSEMBLY. 

The Assembly does not sustain the complaints, because the proceedings 
in the Presbytery of St. Louis in this case appear constitutional and regular, 
and, so far as we can perceive, were judicious, equitable, and for the edifi- 
cation of the Church. 

These complainants, both in their language and the necessity of the case, 
brought the whole proceedings under our review. The question of a disso- 
lution of the pastoral relation between Dr. McPheeters and the Pine Street 
Church was originally brought in an orderly manner before the Presbytery 
by a petition from a minority of said Church and a personal tender of 
resignation by the pastor, and, after all the constitutional steps, taken with 
care and deliberation, was decided by the Presbytery, acting for the peace 
and welfare of that Church. That which was called an appeal and com- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



287 



plaint to Synod against that action could not so suspend all further proceed- 
ings as to prevent the Presbytery from considering and acting upon the 
continued disturbed state of that congregation ; and when at a subsequent 
stated meeting of that body this subject came before them, they did almost 
unanimously deem it unadvisable that the late pastor should continue min- 
isterial labors in that congregation against this decision of the Presbytery. 

Dr. McPheeters and others have uttered their complaints, which we do 
not sustain. 

The Assembly has patiently listened to the history of this case from the 
opposite points of view taken, but, in their decision, have strictly confined 
themselves to the facts on record. The resignation of the pastoral relation 
and the distracted state of the Chuch seemed plainly to call for the action 
of the Presbytery, and being on the ground and conversant with all the 
circumstances and demands of the case, they seem most competent to under- 
stand and decide upon what that action should be. The question of a 
pastor's loyalty to the national government, which seemed to be so largely 
a disturbing element in the Church, has not been properly before the As- 
sembly, as it was not pronounced upon in any Presbyterial action. They 
judged it best for the peace and prosperity of that particular Church that 
the late pastor should retire altogether and cease from his public minis- 
trations to them. And this Assembly could not decide otherwise. And 
though many members of the Presbytery were absent from that meeting 
which so decided, this could not invalidate their proceedidgs, as it was a 
regular and careful meeting of that body. The right and duty of the Pres- 
bytery to " order whatever pertains to the spiritual welfare of the Churches 
under their care," and especially to heal dissensions by seeking to remove 
the occasion of them, is a distinctive and important feature of our Presby- 
terian polity. And when the pastor himself so far recognizes the propriety 
of his withdrawal as to tender to the Presbytery his resignation, it was 
clearly competent for that body not only to grant his request, but to order, * 
if necessary, that he cease his ministrations to that people, if they believed 
that by longer continuing to serve them the dissensions would be promoted, 
the strife become embittered, and the spiritual interests of the Church en- 
dangered. And when the Presbytery did at length so interfere, and direct, 
without pronouncing upon the rumors and side issues which were the 
occasion of the strife and unhappy condition of the Church, they simply 
undertook to control the relations of pastor and people for the welfare of 
the Church, without impeaching by expression the moral character and 



288 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



ministerial standing of that pastor. They only ordered, as a prudential 
measure, that the resignation, which he voluntarily tendered to them, ought 
properly and entirely to be carried out, by his ceasing in any way to keep 
up this unhappy state of things — by ceasing to minister to them as their 

pastor. 



That the decision of the Assembly against Dr. McPheeters, 
in the judgment of history, must ever be pronounced uncon- 
stitutional, cruel and unjust, will appear plain from the follow- 
ing considerations : 

i. It is not true, as alleged, that the " question of a dissolu- 
tion of the pastoral relation between Dr. McPheeters and the 
Pine Street Church was originally brought in an orderly man- 
ner before the Presbytery, by a petition from a minority of 
said Church and a personal tender of resignation by the pas- 
tor, and, after all the constitutional stepts, taken with care and 
deliberation, was decided by the Presbytery, acting for the 
peace and the welfare of that Church." 

The special meeting of St. Louis Presbytery, called to assem- 
ble on the 15th of May, 1863, "in order to dissolve the pas- 
toral relation between Dr. McPheeters and the Pine Street 
Church, omitting even the constitutional condition, if the way- 
be clear," was not convened either at the request of the pas- 
tor or a majority of his congregation. Moreover, it was clearly- 
determined upon, in advance of all deliberation, that the pastor 
should be expelled. To this end Presbytery was summoned, 
and at a time of much excitement, growing out of the Southern 
struggle for constitutional liberty, and when martial law was in 
full force and vigorously enforced, and when it was said on the 
street that if Dr. McPheeters' friends attended Presbytery they 



VOTE. 



To sustain the appeal, 

To sustain in part 

Not to sustain 



117 



47 



2 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 289 

would be arrested. In consequence of this military terror a 
number went home who intended to participate in the Presby- 
terial proceedings, while two ministers were actually seized and 
thrown into prison because of their known sympathies for Dr. 
McPheeters. This Presbytery, called at the instance of seven 
persons, only one of whom was a member of the Pine Street 
Church, convened on the 15th of May, and was composed of 
only sixteen out of nearly sixty ministers and elders who had a 
right to sit. 

Dr. McPheeters, " under duress," and in order to save his 
friends, did not ask for a dissolution of the pastoral relation, 
but " simply put his resignation into the hands of Presbytery." 
Rev. W. H. Park and Rev. A. D. Madeira were already in 
jail, and the gentle pastor was horrified at the thought that 
any act of his should add to this number. Presbytery met, 
and " Pine Street Church and congregation were cited to 
appear by their commissioners before another Presbytery to be 
held on June 3d. In the meantime, Pine Street Church were 
directed to meet and take action in the premises. Accordingly, 
the Church did meet, and " Resolved, that this meeting do not 
agree to and protest against the dissolution of the existing 
relation with the Rev. Dr. Samuel B. McPheeters as pastor of 
Pine Street Church, and that we request him to withdraw his 
resignation offered to the St. Louis Presbytery." The recorded 
vote on this resolution shows 91 in favor to 56 opposed. 
When Presbytery met on the 3d of June considerable doubt 
existed as to the " constitutional right at its present ses- 
sion to issue the matters connected with Pine Street Church." 
Presbytery accordingly adjourned, and a call was immediately 
issued for a meeting to be held June 23, 1863. After this 
another meeting of Pine Street Church and congregation was 
also held, called together by order of Session of said Church. 

*9 



290 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

This meeting, by a large majority, passed a resolution of pro- 
test against the dissolution of the pastoral relation. Presby- 
tery, according to its own appointment, met on June 23d, and 
Dr. McPheeters, urged thereto by his congregation, asked 
leave to withdraw his resignation, offered under such peculiar 
circumstances. The request was denied, and Presbytery pro- 
ceeded to dissolve the pastoral relation. 

Here, then, " we have the strange anomaly of the resignation 
by the pastor, of a denial and rejection of the majority of the 
congregation from their right to be heard why the resignation 
should not be accepted, and the reception and hearing of a 
commissioner from the minority to urge acceptance of the resig- 
nation and a dissolution of the pastoral relation • and, strangest 
of all, an entry on the solemn and sacred records of Presbytery, 
a High Court of Jesus Christ, " that the request of Pine Street 
Church be granted and the pastoral relation dissolved," when 
no such request had ever been made; on the contrary ', a sole??in protest 
against it! Moreover, " Dr. McPheeters did not have the poor 
privilege, accorded to the meanest of criminals, to stand before 
the bar which virtually tried and condemned him ; and, in the 
adoption of the final resolution to dissolve the pastoral relation, 
out of the eight ministers who voted for it, but two had a pas- 
toral charge, and only eleven ministers and Ruling Elders in all, 
out of about sixty in full Presbytery, sundered, a relation which 
had existed happily and prosperously for twelve years, and that, 
too, without allowing either the pastor or the commissioners of 
the Church to be heard." 

It is a humiliating thought to every man who loves Presby- 
terianism that the Newark Assembly, " with the whole pro- 
ceedings under their review," should have decided that " the 
question of a dissolution of the pastoral relation between Dr. 
McPheeters and the Pine Street Church was originally brought 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



291 



in an orderly manner before the Presbytery by a petition from 
a minority of said Church and a personal tender of resignation 
by the pastor, and after all the constitutional steps, taken with 
care and deliberation, was decided by the Presbytery, acting 
for the peace and welfare of that Church." Well might Dr. 
Charles Hodge declare, in referring to the action of this As- 
sembly, " there was consummated an injustice which has few, 
if any, parallels in the history of our Church." 

Still further : the General Assembly sustained the St. Louis 
Presbytery in its flagrant disregard of that clause in the Dis- 
cipline which declares that " the necessary operation of an 
appeal is to suspend all further proceedings on the ground of 
the sentence appealed from." For the action of Presbytery, at 
its meeting on the 6th of April, 1864, was taken in the absence 
of Dr. McPheeters, and at a time when a majority of the 
members of Presbytery did not and could not attend on ac- 
count of military orders in force, and after an appeal before 
Synod was docketed for hearing. Nor can it be pleaded as 
an excuse that Presbytery has at all times a right " to order 
whatever pertains to the spiritual welfare of the Churches under 
their care," since all ecclesiastical bodies are bound always to 
be governed by the special rules prescribed for their direction. 
When, therefore, the General Assembly declares the St. Louis 
Presbytery that committed these outrages to be a " regular and 
careful meeting of that body," the only care and regularity that 
can be detected by an impartial mind is the arrest and the im- 
prisonment of Parks and Madeira, whilst threats were held 
over all in case they refused to expel Dr. McPheeters from his 
charge. 

In addition to this, one is absolutely amazed when it is stated 
in the decision of the Assembly "that the question of the 
pastor's loyalty to the National Government, which seemed to 



292 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

be so largely a disturbing element in the Church, has not been 
properly before the Assembly, as it was not pronounced upon 
in any Presbytery." Drs. Rice, Junkin, Musgrave, Schenck, 
all asserted on the floor of the Assembly, in Newark, that 
" disloyalty" constituted the very gist of the accusation against 
McPheeters. This one count in the declaration was reiterated 
throughout every stage of the prosecution, from the lowest 
court to the highest. The foulest tongue that ever whispered 
calumny never breathed an insinuation against the spotless 
character of the Pine street pastor aside from this oft-repeated 
charge. Because Dr. McPheeters refused to subscribe to a 
political oath and in other ways mingle the religion of Jesus 
Christ with the affairs of Caesar as a condition to membership 
in a Presbytery, his pastoral relationship to Pine Street Church 
was dissolved at the point of the bayonet. Rev. James A. 
Paige, the Stated Clerk and a " loyal man," when reproached 
for this wickedness replied, " We had to do that, for we felt we 
were weak." And once again, Rev. S. J. P. Anderson, D. D., 
testifies that even the celebrated Rosecrans oath was inaugurated 
not by the military, but by the instigation of Church authorities. 
Dr. Anderson says : " It was related to me by a staff officer of 
that General, and I have it also from another prominent officer 
in the military service, and I know the fact, that that order was 
issued under a misapprehension; and I know the fact that 
when it was ascertained in the Church that that order could be 
used for a purpose to be accomplished in the Church, that it 
was seized upon by certain individuals ; that they went to the 
military authorities and induced them to send their officers to 
the meetings of the Churches. And, sir, I will say this : that 
instead of its having been a fight with them, I have always 
received from those gentlemen when I have been before them — 
and, sir, I am no stranger to any one of them — the utmost 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



293 



courtesy and consideration. The trouble has not come from 
the authorities — from the civil authorities ; nobody thought of 
that, because in every instance where the civil authorities could 
reach the case a remedy has been promptly applied. You 
know that and I know it. Jut the trouble has been from the 
Church ; those men in it — Ministers and Ruling Elders — who, 
finding a military order could be used to accomplish a purpose, 
invoked military action as a means of accomplishing their end." 

All the foregoing facts were notorious and they have never 
been disputed by any one. The Newark Assembly can not 
plead ignorance, because they profess to have listened patiently 
to the history of Dr. McPheeters' case " from the opposite 
points of view taken," and because " the proceedings of St. 
Louis Presbytery and the records of the Missouri Synod were 
in their hands for review and approval, or for correction." The 
Assembly came to the decision of this case with an open eye, 
and when, therefore, to use the language of Dr. N. L. Rice, 
"it sanctioned such monstrosities" it meant, in Dr. Junkin's 
words, "to banish Dr. McPheeters from the bosom of a trusting 
and loving people, and, spotted and sick, send him forth a 
wanderer." 

The decision of the Assembly is rendered, and that " con- 
fessedly gifted, godly and faithful man" prepares to depart. 
His slender figure moves weariedly, though with firm and gentle 
step, down the aisle. Though aspersed and pursued there 
abides no vestige of anger, no sign of outward despair on the 
features, but with the sweet, holy calm of a martyr, he walks 
bravely forward as if, amid the furnace fires, he saw a form 
" like unto the Son of God." And the man that goes forth 
there not knowing, as respects his fellow-men, whither he goes, 
"sick," "suffering," "banished" and "sent forth a wanderer," 
is one who, when " the history ot the struggles for religious 



294 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

liberty and the rights of conscience in this land is fairly written, 
will occupy a position on the roll of its honored champions 
which the best of us may envy." 

Having entered his chamber and committed all to the Mas- 
ter, Dr. McPheeters penned the following lines to his wife, 
dated New York, June 4, 1864: "You have seen what the 
Assembly did. It was painful for me to see a court of the 
Church of Christ do as this one has done. They allowed 
political prejudices to come in and determine their votes, and 
they allowed Strong to attack me with his usual weapons of 
detraction and insinuation. My dear wife, there is one com- 
fort in all this — the Lord Jesus Christ knows every thing about 
this whole matter; He knows my sins and infirmities and He 
knows them to be many ; but He knows also how much is false 
and wicked in the way I have been assailed, and how I have 
been falsely charged and shamefully treated. I have tried to 
keep a good conscience. I have tried to do my duty. You 
must not be cast down. The Lord reigns and He will bring 
it out right. I have met with warm sympathy here from good 
men, who in political matters would be counted loyal by the 
most loyal in St. Louis. They heard Strong, and they judged 
from his own statements what kind of a man he was. 

" My future movements are uncertain and must be left to the 
development of God's providence. It will depend on a variety 
of matters, none of which I can now determine. I am staying 
here now to get my speech printed in pamphlet form, and to 
look around a little and consult about my future plans. Several 
things open up to me as possibilities by which I can live and 
support my family, if I should think it best to leave St. Louis. 
On one point my mind is fixed — to engage in no calling of a 
secular kind as long as any way is open for me to preach the 
gospel. But it must be to preach the gospel — not war-gospel 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



2 95 



or secession gospel or democratic gospel, but Christ's gospel. 
And the day will yet come when even those who, in blindness 
and excitement, now condemn me will know that in all these 

dark times I have kept to that and that alone 

" I am very tired from the excitement I have been in, but in 
good health." 

A letter of sympathy was written by Dr. H. A. Boardman, 
of Philadelphia, on July i, 1864: 

I could not immediately find time to go over the report of your case as 
presented in the religious papers. Nor have I leisure now to comment on 
the subject in detail. But I cannot refrain from expressing to you my sense 
of the injustice with which you have been treated. Unwittingly, as I believe, 
our Assembly has succumbed to the passions of the hour and rendered to 
Caesar the things which are God's. The wrong done to you is very great, 
but is small in comparison with the injury inflicted upon the Church. 

My own convictions as to the essential wickedness of the rebellion, and 
the duty of suppressing it, are, as they have always been, very strong. 
But the spiritual independence of the Church of Christ, of the Church as 
a whole, and of each and every branch of it, must be maintained at all 
hazards and at whatever sacrifice. The intolerance of the day in striking at 
you has aimed a deadly blow at this vital principle. I can not and do not 
believe that our Church will give her deliberate sanction to this procedure. 
For the present, in common with all the great denominations, her fasten- 
ings give way and she drifts with the freshet. But I trust in the love and 
faithfulness of her Lord to bring her back to her ancient moorings. 

Meanwhile, you may assure yonrself of the true sympathy of very many 
who love both our Church and country. And, better than this, you will not 
lack for the love and tenderness of the Great Sufferer. Commending you to 
His care, I remain yours in Christian affection. 

After the decision of the Newark Assembly, Dr. McPheeters 
returned to St. Louis. He did not, however, remain inactive, 
but went about preaching the Gospel wherever opportunity 
offered. His words were, " great is the truth, great is patience, 
and greater yet is God." This was the sentiment which had 
animated the preacher's heart from the very first day when he 



5g6 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

entered the sacred office. And it is the principle by which every 
true minister of the New Testament should ever be actuated, 
for if the race were always begun and prosecuted in this spirit 
what untold perplexity might be happily escaped. With the 
young clergyman especially there is great danger from insid- 
ious ambition. Under the pretense of more extended useful- 
ness the soul is cheated. McPheeters, in the start, struck a 
blow at this adversary. Though gifted and admired, he 
•determines to make full proof of his ministry among the 
neglected and poor. He did not stand idle in the market 
place and refuse to enter the vineyard until persuaded to do so 
by honor and ease. Just before him were fields, lowly, indeed, 
but "already white to harvest." The laborer looked upon 
these, and, sickle in hand, went forth to reap. Nor must it 
be matter of wonder to any that he who submits to obscur- 
ity and hardship in the beginning is afterward advanced to 
station and renown. For has it not been a custom from of 
old to invite the humble, but deserving, to positions more 
distinguished than modesty had chosen, while they whose 
presumption sought out "the chief rooms" are ordered to 
seats correspondent to their deserts. Of course, there is no 
promise to the most favored that tribulation shall not come, 
for trials are health-giving and indispensable. The nest of the 
eagle must be stirred ; yet when a cloud, however wild, inter- 
venes between the eye of faith and the Sun of Righteousness, 
this does not betoken wrath or even disapprobation, but from 
that darkness which surrounds and overshadows the soul shall 
be distilled, in due time, the pure and sweet waters of life. If 
the vision tarry, the believer must wait for it. In the mean- 
time he can sing : 

Though dark be my way, since He is my guide, 
5 Tis mine to obey, 'tis His to provide. 
Though cisterns be broken, and creatures all fail, 
The word He has spoken shall surely prevail. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 297 

Dr. McPheeters was persecuted, and even betrayed, by his 
professed friends, yet, because he trusted in Jehovah and 
stayed his mind on Him, his soul was kept in perfect peace. 
This man's life, and what God wrought through His servant, 
speaks to the whole Church, but especially to young brethren 
in the ministry, saying : " Be careful for nothing, but in every 
thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your 
requests be made known unto God." Wait not to be appareled 
in soft garments, to live delicately in king's courts, " but in the 
morning sow thy seed, and in the evening wittihold not thine 
hand, and whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy 
might." Nor need one fear, if honest, to go forth at the 
charges of the Almighty, for the soul that ventures itself fairly 
and fully upon Him shall never be forsaken nor confounded. 
What the Church needs at the present moment is not simply 
an increase in the number of her ministers, but laborers of that 
lofty and devoted type that, are willing to imitate the spirit of 
the Apostle, who " strived to preach the Gospel, not where 
Christ was named, lest he should build upon another man's 
foundation, but as it is written, to whom He was not spoken 
they shall see, and they that have not heard shall understand." 

Dr. McPheeters wrote to his wife from New York : " My 
future movements must be left to the development of God's 
providence. On one point my mind is fixed, to engage in no 
calling of a secular kind as long as any way is open for me to 
preach the Gospel." Such a faith and purpose were not long 
disappointed or long kept in suspense. 

In the spring of 1865 Dr. McPheeters removed to Mulberry 
Church, Shelby county, Kentucky. Dr. S. R. Wilson, the for- 
mer pastor of this congregation, having accepted a call to the 
First Church, Louisville, remarks : " It was a relief and a 
pleasure to resign my flock into the hands of one so eminently 



298 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

fitted for the post, especially at that crisis in the affairs of the 
Church in Kentucky. When the revolutionary acts of the 
General Assembly forced upon the true sons of the Church the 
necessity of endeavoring to recall her members to her standards, 
the counsel and co-operation of Dr. McPheeters were given 
with a most hearty good will and unwavering firmness. He 
was one of the first to put his signature to the Declaration and 
Testimony, and would at any time have sealed that testimony 
with his blood had God seen fit to permit the enemies of the 
truth to use at will the civil sword as they had the ecclesiastical. 
We have often, in conversation, gone over the whole ground of 
that protest, and always did he seem to come to a stronger con- 
viction of its necessity, and mournfully would he speak of the 
ominous persistence of the great body of the ministry in adhering 
to so open and manifest apostasy from the vital principles of 
the Word of God and the Constitution of the Church." 

On the other hand, Dr. McPheeters observed frequently that 
it was a notable Providence which brought him weary and sick 
to this quiet country home, when the bold-hearted Wilson, 
endued with strength, had just been summoned to a central 
and prominent position, where the assaults upon truth could be 
more effectually resisted. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

PITTSBURG ASSEMBLY DECLARATION AND TESTIMONY. 

In May, 1865, the Assembly met in Pittsburg. The South 
had been conquered. The whole country lay helpless at the 
feet of a victorious army. Scarcely an individual, from the 
Potomac to the Gulf, could be found who did not, in some 
form, suffer. On account of hunger, nakedness and frightful 
poverty, " no heart was left in the people." " In that day 
there was great mourning; all the families that remained 
mourned apart." The writer speaks from personal knowledge 
and experience. It was in this great crisis of history that a 
Court of the Lord Jesus came together at Pittsburg. Never in 
the history of Presbyterianism — seldom, if ever, in the history 
of the whole Church — has there been presented an opportunity 
so grand for the exercise of genuine Christian heroism. The 
Church at the South, " stripped of her raiment, and wounded, 
and half dead, appealed mutely to the passer-by that he would 
bind up her wounds, pour in oil and wine, set her on his own 
beast, bring her to an inn and take care of her." In this dread- 
ful moment mankind, humanity itself, expected the Assembly 
of the North to be gentle, magnanimous, just. And if, in that 
hour, the Pittsburg Court had risen to the hight of the great 
argument, the records of Presbyterianism in this land might 
have been forever changed. But alas, alas, alas ! the paper on 
the state of the country this year expatiates upon " the inex- 
tinguishable love for our national Union with which the hearts 
of the loyal people were filled;" upon " the mighty host of 



300 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

valiant men who were ready to give their lives in defense of 
our National Government ; " upon the " various departments 
of that Government which equipped and maintained our vast 
army and navy ; " upon the " leaders, of wisdom, courage and 
skill, suited for every emergency; " upon the "unwonted ben- 
evolence which promoted the physical comfort and spiritual 
welfare of our soldiers and sailors." It canonizes Mr. Lincoln, 
but "rejoices that he was permitted to see the power of the re- 
bellion crushed, its strongholds repossessed, its conquered armies 
forced to surrender, the national honor, untarnished by acts of 
barbarism or cruelty, vindicated ; " " the integrity of the Union 
preserved, the scheme of emancipation, which he had the 
wisdom to devise and the courage to execute, made effective to 
the deliverance from bondage of four millions of slaves." 

So much for President Lincoln, war, politics and the recently 
liberated negro. But when Rev. R. P. Farris, D. D., of St. 
Charles, Mo., came before the Assembly to claim redress for 
grievous outrages inflicted by Gen. Rosecrans and the Missouri 
Synod, the judicatory were in no humor to entertain the com- 
plaint, but thought " great allowance should be made." Dr. S. 
R. Wilson and others protested, but the Assembly replied that 
they " were not called upon to decide anything in regard to the 
propriety or impropriety of the military order referred to in the 
protest." Caesar framed an oath, and held for a criminal every 
ambassador of " King Jesus " who refused to take it as an 
indispensable qualijicatio?i to a seat in Christ's Court. If any 
drew back for conscience sake, the doors of Presbytery and 
Synod were barred. The Northern Assembly winked at this 
great wrong and said, " great allowance should be made." The 
oath was as follows : 

C of County, State , do hereby solemnly swear that I will 

bear true allegiance to the United States and support and sustain the Con- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 3OI 

% 

stitution and laws thereof ; that I will maintain the National Sovereignty para- 
mount to that of all State, County or Confederate powers ; that I will dis- 
countenance, discourage and forever oppose secession, rebellion, and the 
disintegration of the Federal Union ; that I disclaim and denounce all faith 
and fellowship with the so-called Confederate armies, and pledge my honor, 
my property, and my life, to the sacred performance of this my solemn oath 
of allegiance to the Government of the United States of America). 

" Christian men, who loved the truth, were now aghast at the 
•peril which confronted the Church of God. They had mourned 
in secret over her sad declension, cherishing, perhaps, the hope, 
that when the extraordinary pressure of the war should cease, 
then the Church would return, under the instincts of piety, to 
the old paths in which she had been accustomed to walk. 
What was their dismay when, in the first hour of peace, these 
aberrations were not only endorsed, but fastened upon the 
Church as the fixed policy to which her future legislation must 
be rigidly conformed. The exigency of the hour called for 
measures of unusual vigor, if the Church was to be plucked 
from the abyss into which she had already plunged. A solemn 
Declaration and Testimony was accordingly drawn up, by Rev. 
Samuel R. Wilson, D. D., against the entire political action of 
the five Assemblies, from 1861 to 1865, inclusive. This Dec- 
laration was numerously signed, particularly in the Synods of 
Kentucky and Missouri, and was largely circulated through the 
bounds of the Old School Church of the North. It was also 
formerly adopted by the Presbytery of Louisville, on the 2d of 
September, 1865, and became a solemn covenant by which all 
the signers pledged themselves to each other to " use their best 
endeavors to bring back the Church of their fathers to her 
ancient purity and integrity, and, if finally compelled to with- 
draw from those who have departed from the truth, to go bear- 
ing with them the true Presbyterian Church, with her doctrine, 
order, worship and freedom, as they have been given her by 



302 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

# 

her Divine Head and transmitted, from generation to genera- 
tion, by the hands of saints, confessors and martyrs." 

As late as 1862 a Presbyter could quietly dissent from the 
acts of the Assembly and yet be allowed to pursue his minis- 
terial avocations, free from interruption and intolerant perse- 
cution. He was not required, under penalty of arrest and ex- 
communication, to accept the doctrines of "freedom and 
loyalty" and to lend himself to the execution of ecclesiastical 
devices, which judgment, unbiased by fanatical zeal, could not 
honestly approve. While matters remained in this position, 
Dr. McPheeters (and many others adopted the sentiment) said, 
in the Assembly that met at Columbus, Ohio, " the Church, as 
such, owes its allegiance only to Jesus Christ. His kingdom is 
the only kingdom she is bound to uphold. His Word is the 
only Constitution that she recognizes as authoritative or is at 
liberty to interpret. The Constitution ot the State binds the 
citizen. The citizen by becoming a Christian comes into no 
new relations to the State. If you shall pass this paper I shall 
stand in my lot and do my duty. Your doing what I believe 
to be wrong will not justify me in doing wrong. For one, I 
have already stood for a year under a deliverance which, in my 
conscience, I believe to be ecclesiastically wrong. If you pass 
this paper I will try to make the best of it. So long as you 
do not require me to do or say anything which, in the sight of 
God, I believe to be wrong, and do not hinder doing or saying 
anything I believe to be right, as I do not think you intend 
to do such a thing, I expect to remain true to all my duties to 
the Church." 

These words were uttered in 1862 ; but in 1865 the aspect of 
affairs had changed. In the meantime the Assembly had taken 
wonderful strides. Every minister was now required not only 
to accept the offensive and unscriptural deliverance, but to 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 303 

co-operate actively in the execution of every doctrinal and 
ecclesiastical decree. No option remained. One must either 
go forward with the multitude or else, pausing at the voice of 
conscience, protest before the world, while the issues of the 
conflict were confided to that God whose judgments are impar- 
tial and whose purposes shall stand. And, still further, let it be 
remembered that Dr. Wilson, the author of the Declaration 
and Testimony, was neither a Southerner by birth nor a Seces- 
sionist in sentiment. His home was in the North, and his 
loyalty to the Government never, any where, came into ques- 
tion. He regarded with sorrow the disruption of the Union, 
and with no ordinary desire longed and prayed for the integrity 
of that Church under whose sheltering wing he and^ his fathers 
before him had dwelt in such comfort. If history, therefore, 
at this point is properly considered, it will be clearly perceived 
that neither the author of the Declaration and Testimony nor 
those who sympathized with his views were peace-breakers or 
schismatics ; but, impelled by the irresistible logic of conscience, 
they sought not simply u to render unto Caesar the things that 
are Caesar's, but also unto God the things which are God's." 

Dr. McPheeters not only signed the " Declaration and 
Testimony," but wrote to Dr. Wilson : " I regard the paper, 
as a whole, as a most able and masterly document — one that, 
without flattery, I think will rank among the papers which will 
make a name and place in history. I could easily fill a sheet 
with what I conceive to be its excellencies — vigorous, manly, 
true, and the utterances of a soul fully alive to the great princi- 
ples involved, it will strike a chord in every heart that feels as 
we do for the desolations of our Zion." 

Drs. Wilson, Robinson and McPheeters labored shoulder to 
shoulder to preserve Presbyterianism in its purity as it came 
down to the people from the fathers. These three, and others 



304 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

of like mind, feeling that a necessity was laid upon them and 
a dispensation committed unto them, defended, in troublous 
times, those principles which are vitally essential to the inde- 
pendence and spirituality of that " Church of God which is 
the pillar and ground of the truth." The doctrines for which 
these men contended are embodied in a " Declaration and 
Testimony " drawn by Rev. S. R. Wilson, D. D., and 
numerously signed by Ministers and Elders in the Synods of 
Kentucky and Missouri. The document is here given : 

To the Ministers, Rtding Elders and Members of the Presbyterian Church 

in the United States, Greeti?ig: 
" Grace be unto you, and peace from God our Father, and from 

the Lord Jesus Christ." 

Beloved Brethren : The occasion upon which we address you is one 
of no ordinary interest to the Church of our Lord Jesus. For several years 
past that Church in this country has been departing farther and farther from 
both the spirit and the plain letter of her commission to * ' preach the Gospel 
to every creature" and her charter as a "kingdom not of this world." 
The Presbyterian branch of the Church — that which we stand immediately 
connected with — for which our fathers labored, suffered and prayed, and 
whose doctrine and order we have loved above all things else on earth, 
sadly disappointing our most sanguine hopes, and recreant to her principles 
and ancient testimonies, has essayed to take the lead in this grievous 
departure from the faith and practice enjoined by her King and Head and 
solemnly professed in her confession and catechisms and symbols. Step 
by step she has gone away from the old paths, despite every warning and 
entreaty addressed to her by those wh$ have still remained faithful, until 
we have reason to fear it will be in vain to attempt to bring her back again 
to the way of truth from which she has departed. From year to year, as 
the General Assembly has come together, we have cherished still the hope 
that it would reconsider those acts which have been the occasion of distrust 
and alarm, and recalling the Church to the true spiritual and divine nature 
of her calling and work, would restore the ancient landmarks and thus 
re-assure the hearts of those who have trembled for the safety of the Ark 
of God. But these hopes have again and again been doomed to disappoint- 
ment, until, by the decisions of the Supreme Judicatory of the Church, at 



MEMOIR OF S. B. m'PHEETERS, D. 0. 



its recent meeting in Pittsburg, the consummation seems to have been' 
reached, and the seal finally set upon all previous unconstitutional an<$ 
unscriptural acts of the body, and the full purpose declared to compel our 
ministers, elders and members to approve of those acts under pain of 
exclusion from the communion and fellowship of the Church. 

Such is the crisis which is now upon us and which we are compelled to 
meet. There is left to us no alternative ; if we would not prove ourselves 
unworthy of the trust which has been committed to our hands by our 
Divine Master, handed down from our fathers, baptized with their tears and 
prayers and blood. Fidelity in our lot requires that we should give utter- 
ance to no equivocal testimony and hesitate in no uncertain posture at such 
a moment. To remain silent or stand inactive must alike be fatal to our- 
selves and to the Church. To suffer ourselves to be cajoled by ' 'good 
words and fair speeches," or intimidated by threats into acquiescence in, or 
a feeble, compromising opposition to, the unscriptural doctrines and uncon- 
stitutional measures now maintained in the Church, will most assuredly 
make us partakers in the sin of those who have corrupted and betrayed her. 
It is, therefore, under a deep conviction of the imperative call made upon 
us to bear a clear and unequivocal testimony against this departure of the 
Church from her ancient faith and order that we have drawn up and do now 
publish to the word this solemn Declaration and Testimony, that so we may 
acquit ourselves of all complicity with that subversion of the Law of Christ's 
Kingdom and surrender of the crown rights of Zion's King on account of 
which the name and honor of our Lord are this day every where blasphemed. 
If we can do nothing more than clear ourselves from the guilt of so great 
a crime, we shall have thereby secured ourselves from a participation in its 
punishment. Yet, by the blessing of God upon our efforts in this behalf, 
we shall not despair of so rallying 4 the faithful friends of a pure and free 
Church around the banner which God has given us "to be displayed 
because of the truth " as to be able to defeat in great measure the schemes 
of those who seem by their acts to be saying, concerning the beautiful and 
holy temple of our fathers, "Rase it, rase it, even to the foundation 
thereof." 

THE ERRORS AGAINST WHICH WE TESTIFY. 

In the name, therefore, of the living God, the Holy One of Israel, we 
do solemnly testify : 

I. Against the assumption on the part of the Courts of the Church of the 
20 



306 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



right to decide questions of State policy. This right has been assumed by 
all the courts of the Church. But we shall here only speak particularly of 
what has been done by our court of highest judicature. That the General 
Assembly has claimed and exercised this right of jurisdiction over questions 
of State policy for the past five years, and that to the fullest extent, certainly 
no one at all acquainted with the acts of that body can deny. We cite in 
proof only the so-called "Spring Resolutions" of '61 ; the papers on the 
state of the country in '62 and '63 ; the act on the subject of slavery in '64, 
and the ordinances on "loyalty" and "the Southern Churches " in '65. 
The discussion of these several acts occupied a very large part of the time 
and absorbed nearly the whole attention of the respective Assemblies by 
which they were passed. In all of them the substantial questions at issue, 
and about which the Assembly gave its decision, were questions touching 
the policy of the State in regard to its citizens and the duty of the citizens 
in respect to the policy of the State. Concerning the first of these acts, 
namely, that entitled the "Spring Resolutions," the following judgment 
was expressed in a protest against the passage of those resolutions, drawn 
up by Rev. Dr. Hodge and signed by about sixty others. Let their lan- 
guage be attended to : " That the paper adopted by the General Assembly 
does decide the political question just stated (viz. : ' To what government 
the allegiance of Presbyterians as citizens is due') is, in our judgment, unde- 
niable. It asserts not only the loyalty of this body to the Constitution and 
the Union, but it promises, in the name of all the Churches and ministers 
whom it represents, to do all that in them lies to strengthen, uphold and 
encourage the Federal Government. It is, however, a notorious fact that 
many of our ministers and members conscientiously believe that the alle- 
giance of the citizens of this country is primarily due to the States to which 
they respectively belong, and, therefore, that when a State renounces its 
connection with the United States and its allegiance to the Constitution the 
citizens of that State are bound by the laws of God to continue loyal to their 
State and obedient to its laws. The paper adopted by the Assembly virtually 
declares, on the other hand, that the allegiance of the citizen is due to the 
United States, anything in the Constitution, ordinances or laws of the sev- 
eral States to the contrary notwithstanding. In adopting this 
paper, therefore, the Assembly does decide the great political question which 
agitates and divides the country. It is not a question which 
this Assembly has a right to decide. 1 " 

"A man may conscientiously believe that he owes allegiance to one Gov- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 307 

eminent or another, and yet possess all the qualifications which the Word of 
God or the standards of the Church authorizes us to demand in our members 
or ministers. " 

" It is the allegiance of the Old School Presbyterian Church to the Con- 
stitution, the Union and the Federal Government which this paper is 
intended to profess and proclaim. It does, therefore, of necessity decide 
the political questions which agitate the country. It pronounces or assumes 
a particular interpretation of the Constitution. This is a matter clearly 
beyond the jurisdiction of the Assembly. 

"That the action of the Assembly in the premises does not only decide the 
political question referred to, but makes that decision a test of membership 
in our Church, is no less deary ........ 

"The General Assembly, in thus deciding a political question, and in 
making that decision practically a condition of membership in the Church, 
has, in our judgment, violated the Constitution of the Church a?zd usurped 
the prerogatives of its Divine Master " — [Minutes 1861, pp. 339, 340.] 

In answering this protest the Assembly does not deny, but admits, the 
allegations contained in it, and argues in defense of the right of the Assem- 
bly to make the decisions objected to. The action of subsequent Assem- 
blies has still further asserted and exercised this usurped power, until the 
highest Court of the Church, once so venerated for its apostolic character, 
has become transformed, in the eye of the world, into a political convention, 
the chief occupation of which is to debate and determine matters of a par- 
tisan political character, and to anathematize all who claim the right of pri- 
vate judgment on such matters. 

II. We testify against the doctrine that the Church, as such, owes alle- 
gia7ice to hwnan rulers or governments. Allegiance or loyalty, in respect to 
human governments, is alone predicable of persons as citizens. The Church 
owes her allegiance alone to Jesus Christ, who is sole King in Zion. To no 
earthly power can she yield submission without being unfaithful to her Lord 
and Husband, and being guilty of that spiritual harlotry on account of which 
the most fearful plagues are denounced against her in the Prophets. 

III. We testify against the sanction given by the Church to the perversion 
of the teachings of Christ and His Apostles upon the subject of the duty of 
Christians, as citizens, to "render unto Ccesar the things that are Ccesar's," 
and to "be subject unto the higher powers " These and similar scriptures 
are cited to sustain the claim of the Assembly and other Church Courts to 
decide upon political questions ; to prove that the allegiance of a Christian, 



308 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

as such, is due to a particular government; to warrant the exclusion of a 
minister from his office, or a member from his Church privileges, because he 
does not believe his allegiance is due to this or that particular administration, 
or that he is bound to obey every decree or law of the government under 
which he may chance to live ; and to bind the citizen, as a Christian, by the 
law of Christ, ' ' to uphold, strengthen and encourage a particular form of 
government, or a present administration of that government, or the acting 
ruler by whom it may chance to be administered, in antagonism to other 
existing governments or rulers, as though the one were of Divine right 
rather than the others ; and as if such particular government or adminis- 
tration or ruler were so "the ordinance of God" and "ordained" of Him 
as to make it, for that reason, obligatory upon the Christian, as such, "as 
far as in him lies, to promote and perpetuate " its existence and power, and 
to sustain and pray for the success of whatever measures it may see fit from 
time to time to adopt for the accomplishment of its particular ends, or to give 
effect to its peculiar schemes at home or abroad. We deny that these Scrip- 
tures or any others, when fairly interpreted, give any sanction to the doc- 
trines just stated. These doctrines are contrary to the teachings of the 
Word of God, and are virtually the doctrines of despotism and unquestion- 
ing, unconditional submission and obedience to the commands of any actual 
ruler, no matter what those commands may be. This is to make Chris- 
tianity the tool of tyrants and its teachings the bulwark of unlimited arbi- 
trary power. 

IV. We testify against the action of the Assembly oji the subject of slavery 
and emancipation in 1864, and as confirmed in 1865. In that action the 
Assembly has laid itself justly liable to the charge of disingenuousness, in 
that it does not quote fairly from former utterances upon the same subject. 
It omits altogether all reference to the uniform and most important declara- 
tion contained in its previous expressions of opinion, that immediate, indis- 
criminate emancipation of the negro slaves amongst us would be unjust and 
injurious to both master and slave. And then it leaves entirely unnoticed 
the act of 1845 and treats it as a nullity, although precisely the one only act 
ever passed by an Assembly which is sustained and enforced by an appeal 
to the only authority which the Church has any right to appeal for the sup- 
port and sanction of her decisions, to-wit : the Word of God. And then, 
upon this basis of suppression and perversion, there is laid down a new doc- 
trine upon this subject of slavery unknown to the apostolic and primitive 
Church ; a doctrine which has its origin in infidelity and fanaticism ; a doc- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 309 

trine which the Presbyterian Church had before uniformly treated as a dan- 
gerous error, and which the General Assembly of 1845 solemnly declared 
they could not sanction il without contradicting some of the plainest declara- 
tions of the Word of God" and " charging the Apostles of Christ with con- 
niving at sin, introducing into the Church such sinners, and thus bringing 
upon them the curse of the Almighty. " And, further, that Assembly declared 
that, should they affirm the doctrine which the Assembly in 1864 did affirm, it 
would be "to dissolve itself" and "abandon the organization under which, 
by the Divine blessing, it has so long prospered." Nor has the Assembly 
been content with merely affirming these new doctrines upon slavery and 
emancipation, but has required a co?'dial belief and approbation of them as 
a condition of membership to the Church and of the exercise of their official 
functions to the ministry. (Acts of the Assembly of 1865, passim.) 

V. We testify against the unjust and scandalous contradiction of their 
own recorded testimony and the well known facts in regard to the labors of 
the Presbyterian Church and ministry for the Christianizing of the slaves 
of the South and the preaching of the Gospel of Christ. On this subject 
the Assembly of 1847 speaks thus : "In reviewing the past, we find that 
notice has been taken by several previous Assemblies of the interest mani- 
fested in the religious instruction of the colored population of our country. 
The reports received this year justify the belief that this interest has greatly 
increased since the meeting of the last Assembly. Almost all the Presby- 
teries covering the ground where this portion of our population are found 
in the greatest numbers refer to the subject, and speak of efforts to supply 
them with the means of grace, as being decidedly on the advance." — [Min. 
1847, pages 403, 408.] Again, in 1854, this testimony is borne by the As- 
sembly: "The reports sent to us from the Presbyteries covering the 
portion of the Church in which there is a large slave population reveal 
the gratifying fact that the zeal hitherto manifested on behalf of the religious 
welfare of this class, instead of abating, is evidently growing more ardent 
and active. In their houses of worship, provision, at once special and libe- 
ral, is made for the accommodation of the colored people, so that they may 
enjoy the privileges of the sanctuary in common with the whites. Besides 
this, nearly all our ministers hold a service in the afternoon of the Sabbath 
in which the exercises are particularly adapted to their capacities and wants. 
In some instances, ministers are engaged in their exclusive service — not 
ministers of inferior ability, but such as would be an ornament and a bless- 
ing to the intelligent, cultivated congregations of the land. In a still larger 



3IO MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

number of instances, the pastor of a Church composed of the two classes — 
inasmuch as the blacks form the more numerous portion, devotes to them 
the greater share of his labors, and finds among them the most pleasing 
tokens of God's smile upon his work. Besides the preaching of the Word 
to which they have free access, in many cases a regular system of catechetical 
instruction, for their benefit, is pursued, either on the Sabbath at the house 
of worship or during the week on the plantations where they reside. Thus 
we give thanks unto God, our common Father, that he has inspired the 
hearts of our brethre7i in the parts of our Church refen-ed to, with love to 
the souls of this numerous race, and that he has opened among them a wide 
and effectual door of usefulness." — [Min. 1854, page 484.] 

But, in contradiction of all this, the Assembly now affirm that ' ' the 
removal of the shackles of bondage" has brought this race "within the 
reach of missionary effort as objects of Christian benevolence." They 
rejoice in the fact that God has, in the midst of the desolation of so much of 
our country, "opened a way for the instruction and elevation of this long 
degraded people; that the slaves are " inspired with the fact that they are 
now called by God to conquer for their people a position among the races 
of mankind." It is affirmed that in their condition of servitude they were 
degraded and brutalized ; that their masters were also brutalized — slavery 
being the cause of rebellion and cruelty, and the natural root of assassination 
and murder ; that whilst in a state of servitude they were deprived of the 
means of becoming acquainted with the Christian religion, and that the 
Presbyterian Church could not heretofore carry to them a pure gospel. 
— [Min. of Assembly, 1864.-6$ — Reports of Freedmen's Committee to the 
General Assembly.] 

VI. We testify against the doctrine widely taught in the Church, and 
even countenanced by the Assembly, that the acts and deliverances of the 
Courts of Christ's Commonwealth may properly be based upon and shaped 
in accordance with the ordinances and laws of State Legislatures, the orders 
and proclamations of military chieftains, and even the results of popular 
votes given at the elections. That before a Court of Christ ought to take 
action upon important questions brought before them, it is right and fitting 
they should inquire "what the Cabinet at Washington may wish them to 
do," and ascertain what effect their action may be likely to have upon the 
mind of the President and the Army, or upon the price of Government 
stocks abroad. — [Assemblies of '61 and 64. ] 

VII. We testify against the doctrine that the will of God as to the duty 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



3" 



of the Church and of his people is to be learned from particular providen- 
tial events, and that the teachings of the Scripture are to be interpreted by 
these Providences. Thus the Word of God is subjected to the mere caprice 
of a man's own fancy, and its supreme authority as the only infallible rule 
of faith and duty is subordinated to the blind and ever-erring interpretations 
which may be put upon certain isolated occurrences, by human ignorance, 
passion, pride, prejudices, superstition and selfishness. And the more false 
and subversive of the divinely-given foundations of faith and duty does this 
doctrine become, when amongst the special providences from which the will 
of God is to be learned are enumerated by the Assembly such as these : 
"The organization of a bloody rebellion;" "the proclamations of the 
highest Executive authority ;" " the declared policy of the President" con- 
cerning certain measures of doubtful result and over which he himself has 
only partial control ; the "enlisting of slaves as soldiers in the National 
armies," and "the setting on foot of measures of emancipation in the loyal 
States, which measures are near their consummation." A more total aban- 
donment of God's Written Word, for the uncertain light of dark and 
mysterious and yet undeveloped providences, and these to be expounded by 
men, it may be, "having their understandings darkened," and, for "not 
obeying the truth," perchance " given up to believe a lie," can scarcely be 
conceived of. As well go back to the simpler superstitions of the Greek 
and Roman priesthood, and regard the flight of the vulture or the cackling 
of a goose as indications of the will of God. For these are not less provi- 
dential events than the marshaling of negro soldiers or the declared policy 
of the highest executive authorities. "Are not two sparrows sold for a 
farthing ? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father." 

VIII. We testify against the sanction which has been given, both directly 
and indirectly, to the usurpation, by the secular and military power, of au^ 
thority in and over the worship and .government of the Church. This 
usurpation has been sanctioned by Sessions, Presbyteries, Synods and the- 
General Assembly, directly, by various acts, which are fully known to the- 
world — as, for example, in the case of the Pine Street Church and Dr. 
McPheeters, of St. Louis, in 1863-64, and in the case of the St. Charles. 
Church and Messrs. Farris and Watson, in 1864-65. By the endorsement, 
in word and act, of such usurpation as perfectly right by the Seminaries at 
Princeton and Danville, as witness the doctrine laid down by the Princeton 
Professor of Theology, and the doctrine and practice of the Danville Pro- 
fessor in the same department. Indirectly, this usurpation of the kingly 



"312 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

rights of Jesus Christ in his own Kingdom has been sanctioned by the 
persistent neglect and refusal of the Assembly, and almost all other Church 
courts, as also the seminaries and pulpit, to condemn such usurpation, or to 
assert in any way the rights and liberties of God's people in all things per- 
taining to the worship and government of His house. 

IX. We testify against that alliance which has been virtually formed by 
the Church with the State; by which the State has been encouraged, and 
even invited, to use the Church as an instrument for giving effect to its va- 
rious schemes of a political character. And, on the other hand, the Church 
has become a subordinate agent, to enforce, with ecclesiastical pains and 
penalties, the demands of the State. This alliance and subordination are 
shown in the clearest manner in the appointing and enforced observance 
by the secular power of days of Fasting and Thanksgiving; in the attempt, 
in various ways, to prescribe what shall be and what shall not be ' 'said and 
sung" in the prayers and hymns and sermons upon those days, as also on 
the Sabbath ; in the issuance of orders directed to certain ministers and 
committees, and accepted by them, giving them authority to preach the 
gospel in certain places, and to take possession of churches, to the exclu- 
sion of other ministers and their congregations ; in the setting up and pre- 
scribing, as tests of ministerial standing and membership in the Church, 
certain political dogmas, and these, too, necessarily of a purely partisan 
character — so that no man may preach the gospel, or enjoy the fellowship 
of the sanctuary unless he can say he holds these dogmas and renounces, 
ex animo, as sin and heresy, the contrary opinions. 

X. We testify against that persecution which has been carried on for these 
last five years past, and with increasing malignity, toward all those who 
have steadfastly refused to sanction or acquiese in these departures of the 
Church from the foundations of truth and righteousness. This spirit of 
persecution seems to have broken over all bounds in the late meeting of the 
Assembly. The testimony of one of its most influential members — one, too, 
who acted in perfect harmony with the great mass of that body — is, that 
"He had been in many political conventions, yet he must say he had never 
any where seen such relentless persecution as is manifested by this General 
Assembly."* This testimony is true. The deliberate and avowed purpose 
of that body, as its several acts most unequivocally show, was to distract 
and destroy churches all over the land (but especially in the Southern and 



*Hon. Judge Evfing. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 313 

Border States), who do not and will not submit to the unconstitutional acts 
and unscriptural doctrines put forth by the Assembly during the past five 
years. Every minister is to be ostracised and driven away, and every con- 
gregation to be scattered that will not subscribe the new tests. Schools, 
Seminaries, Church edifices and Manses are to be seized and appropriated 
to the use of those who are willing to become heralds of this new evangel 
of 1 ' freedom and loyalty," who think that gain is godliness, and who appear 
fully prepared to lead on the Dragonnades of another crusade, in the name of 
God and the State, against Christian women and children, whom they have 
first branded as rebels. Thus the persecution which began in 1861, when 
the Assembly "violated the Constitution of the Church, and usurped the 
prerogative of its Divine Master" by "action . . unjust and cruel in 
its bearing on our Southern brethren " — (Dr. Hodge); which was carried 
out more fully in '64 when the Assembly cast Dr. McPheeters "out of the 
Synagogue;" was consummated in 1865 when the Assembly virtually ex- 
communicated the whole Southern Presbyterian Church, and in effect 
ordained that they should be treated as heathen and outcasts. And as in 
all former times, so now this persecution is sought to be justified by false 
statements and misrepresentations, and is carried on under professed zeal 
for the glory of God., abhorrence of the wickedness of those against whom 
it is aimed, and a most profound and unselfish regard for the rights and 
prerogatives of Caesar. 

XI. We testify against the wide-spread and destructive perversion of the 
commission of the ministry and the province of Church Courts. The com- 
mission of the Christian ministry is plain and simple. To preach the gos- 
pel; to persuade men to be reconciled to God; to teach all things whatsoever 
Christ has commanded. As Heralds and Ambassadors, they are required 
to confine themselves within the exact limits of their commission. They 
are to know no man after the flesh. With them, in the discharge of their 
ministerial functions, there is to be no difference between Jew and Greek, 
Barbarian, Scythian, bond or free. As ministers they owe and can hold 
allegiance to no human government, nor can they give their influence to 
the support of any without violating their commission. They are to know 
nothing in the pulpit but Christ and him crucified; neither North nor 
South; neither Secessionist nor Unionist: neither Loyalist nor Rebel; 
neither Whig nor Tory; neither Republican nor Democrat. And so of 
Church Courts. Their authority is only ministerial and declarative. It is 
spiritual. It has nothing to do with matters which do belong unto the civil 



314 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

magistrate. These courts can only speak when Christ has spoken, and 
declare what he has said. Anything beyond this is Usurpation, and of 
no binding force. 

Yet how entirely the ministry has ceased to execute their commission ; 
and to how great an extent the ecclesiastical courts have transcended their 
jurisdiction, is so notorious that both have become a by- word and reproach 
amongst unbelievers. Topics of a secular and political character are ordi- 
nary and favorite themes of the pulpit. Ministers are become the fiercest 
of political partisans, and cry loudest for blood. And even the mercy seat 
is profaned by the outpourings of hatred and revenge by those who alik e 
profess to be sinners, saved by grace, children of the same heavenly family 
and subjects of one Prince of Peace. When Church courts meet, it is to 
pass resolutions and listen to harangues, "to strengthen and encourage the 
Government," and to "fire the popular heart" with patriotism. The house 
of God, the pillar and ground of the Truth as it is in Jesus, designed to be 
"a house of prayer for all people " has thus, to an alarming extent, become 
transformed into a mere earthly forum, where the spirit of this world usurps 
the seat of the Spirit of truth and mercy and love. 

XII. We testify against the action of the Assembly in reference to the 
Churches in the seceded and border States, and against the basing of that 
action upon an assertion of what the Assembly had the clearest evidence was 
not true. 

The Assembly affirm that the "General Assembly of the Confederate 
States was organized in order to render their aid in the attempt to establish, 
by means of the rebellion, a separate national existence, and to cojiserve and 
perpetitat-e the system of slavery." [Min. of General Assembly 1 865, p. 
560.] And it is upon the assumption of the truth of this assertion that the 
whole action of the Assembly touching the Southern Presbyterians, minis- 
ters and Churches is founded. Yet the evidence was distinctly and repeat- 
edly brought before that body, both by oral testimony and public docu- 
ments, that the assertion was cont?'ary to fact. That, so far from this, the 
Assembly of the so-called Confederate States, in the most solemn and 
explicit manner, denied and disavowed any such objects in their organization, 
and assigned other reasons for their action — reasons having their origin in 
the enactments of the General Assembly itself touching those political ques- 
tions which had agitated and divided the country. " The first thing," says 
that Assembly, "which roused our Presbyteries to look the question of 
separation seriously in the face was the course of the Assembly in ven- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 315 

turing to determine, as a Cou?'t of Jesus Christ, which it did by necessary 
implication, the true interpretation of the Constitution of the United States 
as to the kind of Government it intended to form." . . . " We would 
have it distinctly understood that, in our ecclesiastical capacity, we are nei- 
ther the friends nor the foes of slavery ; that is to say, we have no commis- 
sion either to propagate or abolish it. We have no right, as a Church, to 
enjoin it as a duty or to condemn it as a sin. . . . The social, civil and 
political problems connected with this great subject transcend our sphere, 
as God has not entrusted to his Church the organization of society, the 
construction of governments, nor the allotment of individuals to their 
various stations."* 

This ordinance of the Assembly, thus unjust, in that it is founded upon 
the assertion of what is untrue, is equally unrighteous and inequitable, and 
contrary to the fundamental principles of the Presbyterian Church, in that it 
establishes a law concerning ministers and Church members that is to be 
enforced only in certain localities and upon particular persons. There is 
no reason nor justice in requiring ministers and members in the Southern 
and border States to repudiate opinions and feelings in regard to secession, 
State rights, slavery, &c, &c, whilst ministers and members in the North- 
ern States are allowed to hold unquestioned those same opinions and feel- 
ings, or others equally contrary to the new doctrines of the Assembly upon 
those subjects. Against so gross a violation of that equality in God's house 
which has always distinguished a pure Presbyteranism we do most earnestly 
bear our testimony, as a palpable violation of that principle of the Divine 
law enjoined in both the Old and New Testament: 1 ' Thou shalt not 
respect persons in judgment." 

XIII. We testify against that act of the Assembly by which the Board of 
Domestic Missions (that is, the Executive Committee at Philadelphia, or its 
Corresponding Secretary) are constituted a Coitrt of final and superior 
jurisdiction, to judge of the orthodoxy of the ministry and the soundness 
of their views touching the nature of the Government of the United States, 
the doctrine of State rights, the freedom of the negroes, and the various 
important questions touching their social and civil statics now and prospec- 
tive. 

XIV. We testify against all and every movement in the Church, however 
cautiously or plausibly veiled, which looks to a union of the State with the 

♦Address of G. A. C. S. to the Churches of Jesus Christ throughout the world. 



316 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



Church, or a subordmatio7i of the 07ie to the other, or the interference of 
either with the jurisdiction of the other. We testify against any test of a 
religious character in order to the exercise of the right of citizenship, and 
against any political test whatever as a qualification for membership in the 
Church or the exercise of the functions of the Gospel ministry. 

REASONS FOR THIS TESTIMONY. 

Against each and all these errors in doctrine and practice we testify : 

I. Because they are contrary to the Word of God and subversive of its z;z- 

spiration and supreme authority as the only infallible rule of faith and 

practice. 

The Scriptures constantly assert their own completeness, sufficiency, in- 
fallibility and supreme authority, as the only rule by which man is to be 
guided in his belief and duty. The setting up of any other guide or rule 
is every where condemned, both by prophets and apostles, speaking in the 
name of God. To add to these complete oracles, or take from them, is 
pronounced a heinous crime. To pervert, or make void, or handle deceit- 
fully, or shun to declare any part of this written Word, is to expose oneself 
to the severest punishment. And it is an abomination for any one, but es- 
pecially for the Church, to leave these living oracles and follow the voice of 
false prophets, who undertake to tell what is the will of God, by reading the 
signs of the times and interpreting the meaning of passing events. 4 4 To 
the law and to the testimony, if they speak not according to this Word, it is 
because there is no light in them." ' 'Who is among you that feareth the 
Lord, that obeyeth the voice of His servant, that walketh in darkness and 
hath no light ? let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his 
God. Behold, all ye that kindle a fire, that compass yourselves about with 
sparks ; walk in the light of your fire and in the sparks that ye have kindled. 
This shall ye have of my hand; ye shall lie down in sorrow." (See also 
2 Tim., iii, 16, 17; 2 Peter, i, 16-21.) And our Lord specifically rebuked 
those in his day who were so ready to interpret the will of God as they 
supposed it to be made known in particular acts of Providence, when he 
said to some one who told him of the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had 
mingled with their sacrifices, " Suppose ye that these Galileans were sin- 
ners above all the Galileans, because they suffered such things ? I tell you, 
nay ; but except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Of those eighteen, 
upon whom the tower in Siloam fell and slew them, think ye that they were 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 317 

sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem ? I tell you, nay ; but except 
ye repent ye shall all likewise perish." Whatever the uses to be made of 
the providential events passing around us, they neither furnish us a rule of 
duty, nor a key to the interpretation of the written Word, nor a basis of 
judgment concerning our fellow-men. 

II. Because they are contrary to the doctrine of the Presbyterian Church 
as taught in her Confession, Catechisms and Constitution. On this point a 
few citations will suffice: "The whole counsel of God, concerning all 
things necessary for his own glory, man's salvation, faith and life, is either 
expressly set down in Scripture, or, by good and necessary consequence, 
may be deducted from Scripture, unto which nothing at any time is to be 
added, whether by new revelations of the Spirit or traditions of men." 
"The infallible rule of interpretation of Scripture is the Scripture itself, 
and, therefore, when there is a question about the true and full sense of any 
Scripture (which is not manifold, but one) it may be searched and known by 
other places that speak more clearly. 

"The Supreme Judge by whom all controversies of religion are to be 
determined, and all decrees of councils, opinions of ancient writers, doc- 
trines of men and private spirits are to be examined, and in whose sentence 
we are to rest, can be no other but the Holy Spirit speaking in the Scrip- 
ture." — [Conf. Faith, c. ii. sees. 6, 9, 10.] 

"There is no other head of the Church but the Lord Jesus Christ." 
"The Lord Jesus as King and head of his Church, hath therein appointed 
a government in the hand of Church officers distinct from the civil magis- 
trate." "To these officers the keys of the kingdom of Heaven are com- 
mitted, by virtue whereof they have power" &c. — [Conf. Faith, c. xxv. 
sec. 6. — Also Conf. Faith, c. xxx. sees. 1, 2.] 

" For the better government and further edification of the Church, there 
ought to be such assemblies as are commonly called Synods or Councils ; 
and it belongeth to the overseers and other rulers of the particular Churches, 
by virtue of their office and the power which Christ hath given them for 
edification, and not for destruction, to appoint such assemblies, and to con- 
vene together in them as often as they shall judge it expedient for the good 
of the Church. 

" Synods and Councils are to handle or conclude nothing but that which 
is ecclesiastical, and are not to intermeddle with civil affairs which concern 
the Commonwealth." [Conf. F., c. xxxi. sec. 1, 4.] 

" These assemblies ought not to possess any civil jurisdiction nor to 



3X8 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



inflict any civil penalties. Their power is wholly moral or spiritual, and 
that only ministerial and declarative. 

" Civil magistrates may not assume to themselves the administration of 
the Word and Sacraments, or the powers of the keys of the kingdom of 
heaven, or in the least interfere in matters of faith. . . . It is 
the duty of the civil magistrate to protect the Church of our common 
Lord ... in such a manner that all ecclesiastical persons what- 
ever shall enjoy the full, free and unquestioned liberty of discharging every 
part of their sacred functions without violence or danger. And as Jesus 
Christ hath appointed a regular government and discipline in his Church, 
no law of any Conimonwealth should interfere with, let or hinder the due 
exercise thereof among the voluntary members of any denomination of 
Christians according to their own profession and belief." [Conf. F., c. xxxi. 
sec. 3.] 

In the Second Book of Discipline of the Scotch Church we find the 
principles, which are embodied in the later standards, thus briefly and 
clearly laid down : 

" This power ecclesiastical is different and distinct in its own nature from 
that power and policy which is called the civil power, and appertains to the 
civil government of the Commonwealth ; albeit they be both of God and 
tend to one end, if they be rightly used, to-wit : to advance the glory of 
God and to have godly and good subjects. 

' 4 For this power ecclesiastical flows immediately from God and the 
Mediator Jesus Christ, and is spiritual, not having a temporal head on 
earth, but only Christ, the Spiritual King and Governor of his Kirk. 
Therefore this power and policy of the Kirk should lean upon the Word 
immediately, as the only ground thereof, and should be taken from the pure 
fountains of the Scriptures (the Kirk), hearing the voice of Christ, the only 
Spiritual King, and being ruled by his laws." [Second Book of Disci- 
pline, c. i. sees. 9, 10, 11.] 

III. Because they tend to obliterate all the lines of separation between the 
civil and ecclesiastical powers, to confound their jurisdictions, to identify 
them with each other, and so to destroy the freedom of both. If the Church 
may adjudicate upon " civil affairs which do concern the Commonwealth," 
on the pretense that these affairs "rise up into the region of morals," and 
the State may assume to regulate the worship, teaching and discipline of 
the Church and control her courts, under the pretense of " maintaining the 
authority of the Government and preserving the life of the nation," then 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 319 

there is a practical union of Church and State and an end of civil and religious 
liberty, and the establishment of a meretricious Politico-Ecclesiastical 
despotism. 

To render our views upon this point still clearer, we quote the language 
of another : 

"Nothing in the history of society is more remarkable than the strength 
of that tendency to confound and identify its civil and religious institutions 
which has manifested itself in all ages. And yet from the moment that the 
tribal form of society was superseded by what may be properly called the 
State, and the Church became visible and separate, nothing would be more 
illogical and nothing has been more disastrous. . . . 

"The Church of Christ, though in the world, is not of it. The kingdoms 
of this world are exclusively both in it and of it. . . . The State is for 
things temporal, things local, things visible and transitory. ... In 
that spiritual kingdom manifested in the visible Church, and whose true 
seat is within us, neither time, nor place, nor condition, nor race has any 
vital significance ; nor can flesh and blood inherit it ; nor does anything 
avail but the new creature. Its union with the civil power is the highest 
aggravation of confounding it with the world, for the State is the highest 
form in which the world appears. So that neither the visible Church nor 
the civil power can have any duty, either toward God or itself or each other, 
more clear and transcendent than that each should confine itself, with respect 
to the other, to its own obvious sphere, each regarding the other as the 
ordinance of the common Father and God of both. . . . This spiritual 
independence of the kingdom of God in this world is a necessity so funda- 
mental that no portion of the visible Church has surrendered it without 
surrendering in an equal degree the spirit of its Divine vocation. And all 
corrupt Churches which have sought the closest union with the civil power 
has done so not in order to submit themselves to the dominion of the State, 
but rather to subject it to tyranny as relentless as that which they made it 
the instrument of inflicting. To plead for the freedom of the Church is, 
therefore, to plead at the same time for the independence of States and for 
the security of mankind against the cruelties of all false religion. . . . 

"The Crown and Kingdom of Jesus Christ appertain to him as exclu- 
sively as his cross. He alone is King in Zion, as really as he alone is 
the Redeemer of Israel. It is precisely in this absolute and exclusive head- 
ship of Christ, and the consecration of his Church to him responsive 
thereto, that the root of her inward freedom lies, just as it is in her entire 



320 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



separation from the world that her outward freedom is grounded and can be 
manifest." — [Knowledge of God Subjectively Considered, chap, xxii.] 

IV. Because they have brought the ministry and the ordinances of reli- 
gion and the authority of the Church into public disrepute. Multitudes 
who once frequented the Sanctuary, finding the gospel no longer preached 
there, have ceased to attend. Those who were once listened to with rever- 
ence, as they held forth the word of truth as it is in Jesus, are now despised 
as mere political demagogues who have degraded their calling and become 
the worst panderers to the passions of the unthinking mob. Our Synods and 
Assemblies, whose utterances in former years were received with venera- 
tion, as coming with the sanction of a Divine warrant, have ceased to com- 
mand even ordinary respect. Thus, by reason of the grievous departures 
of the ministry and councils of the Church from the law of their Divine 
Commission, the way of truth is evil spoken of and the name of God and 
his doctrine are blasphemed. Infidelity, in all its various and subtle forms, 
is undermining the faith of not a few who once gloried in the Christian 
name and esteemed it a privilege to be numbered amongst the children of 
Presbyterians. Pure Protestantism has been arrested in its growth, and is 
rapidly losing its power to retard the advance of error and superstition, of 
rationalism and formalism. 

V. Because they tend to keep up strife and alienation among brethren of 
a common faith and thus delay the pacifcatio7i of the country. Is there 
one act of the General Assembly for these years that has breathed the 
spirit of peace and good will? Is there one that has seemed to be actuated 
by the spirit of brotherly kindness and charity ? Alas ! which one is not 
the reverse of all this ? Which one that does not bear the impress of bitter- 
ness and wrath and anger? Which does not necessarily tend to perpetuate 
hostility between the alienated sections and parties of the country; to widen 
instead of healing the breach made by the sword of civil and fratricidal war, 
and dig a gulf that shall be forever impassible between those whom it is the 
interest both of the Church and State to unite again in common bonds ? 

VI. Because they are schismatical. Those who invent new doctrtnes ; 
who teach "for doctrines the commandments of men;" who "bring in 
damnable heresies," are, by the Word of God, adjudged as schismatics. It 
is not those who withdraw from such corrupters of the gospel that are 
chargeable with the sin of schism, but those who, by their false teaching and 
scandalous practice, render it necessary for the faithful to separate them- 
selves in order to preserve their garments undefiled. The woe pronounced 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



323 



by our Lord is upon those "by whom offenses come." The flames of con-' 
suming judgment, symbolized in the Apocalypse, are to come upon ih& 
Apostate Church, not upon those who "come out of her" and renounce? 
her fellowship. The command is to withdraw from such as teach "con- 
trary to the doctrine which is according to godliness," that "servants tinder 
the yoke" should not "count their own masters worthy of all honor" nor 
do them service. — [1 Tim. vi. 1-5.] It is plain that in the course taken by 
the Assembly, against which we testify, that body has given occasion of 
offense, and been the guilty author of a grievous schism in the Church. It 
was on account of some of those unconstitutional and unscriptural, those 
"unjust and cruel" decrees of which we have spoken, that the Southern 
Presbyteries and Synods felt constrained to withdraw from their ancient 
and cherished connection. It is the adherence to all these unscriptural doc- 
trines and ordinances, and the declared purpose of enforcing them upon all 
in our communion, by the exercise of discipline, that is at this moment 
threatening the whole Church with dissolution. "Our people are no longer 
as one body of Christians;" our Churches "are agitated by the tumultuous 
spirit of party," and our Assembly is made the theatre for the open display 
of humiliating scenes of human passions and weakness." Mutual confidence 
is weakened; respect for the supreme judicatory of our Church is impaired; 
our hope that the dignified and impartial course of justice would flow 
steadily onward has expired, and a large portion of the religious press is 
made subservient to error. Those who have succeeded in gaining control 
of the judicatories of the Church, and wielding them for the destruction of 
her purity, peace, liberty and unity, now "seek to give permanent security 
to their errors and to themselves, by raising an outcry in the churches 
against all who love the truth well enough to contend for it." "Troublers 
of the Church," "disloyal," "secessionists," "abettors of treason, assassi- 
nation and murder," "enemies of freedom," and suchlike terms of reproach 
are heaped upon all who raise their voice against the subversion of the 
Church. 

A determination is expressed, and has already been partly put into effect, 
to use the Seminaries and Boards of the Church to perpetuate and propa- 
gate the false doctrines we have enumerated, and to employ the courts of 
the Church to silence and cut off all who refuse to assent to such doctrines. 
Thus the General Assembly, instead of being the safeguard of the faith and 
order of the whole Church, the protector of the rights and liberties of its 
ministers and members, and the bond of unity for the several churches 



322 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



under its care, has itself become the support of heresy, the abettor of in- 
justice and despotism, the fomenter of discord, and the prime leader in 
promoting a great and destructive schism in the body of Christ. 

Such, then, is the alarming, unhappy and ruinous condition to which our 
beloved Church has, with a rapidity unparalleled, at length arrived. The 
ancient landmarks of Truth and Freedom which our fathers set amid the 
raging storm of persecution have been swept away. The infallible oracles 
of God have been abandoned for the purblind leadings of natural instinct 
and the uncertain teachings of human reason. The pure and heavenly prin- 
ciples of charity, taught by apostles and evangelists and illustrated in their 
lives, have been substituted by a shallow humanitarian philanthropy which, 
whilst it devours widows' houses and renders void God's law of love, makes 
broad its phylacteries, and with sound of trumpet parades its zeal for the 
poor and the enslaved. The plainest teachings of the Holy Scriptures 
respecting the relation and duties of masters and servants (despotai kai 
douloi) have been pronounced cruel and unjust; to believe and practice in 
accordance therewith branded as an " unwillingness of the human heart to 
see and accept the truth against the prejudices of habit and interest." And 
an institution which has always existed in the Church uncondemned, and 
which was recognized and sanctioned by Christ and his Apostles, is pro- 
nounced an " evil and guilt " condemned as " SIN," and affirmed to be the 
"root of rebellion, war and bloodshed, and the long list of horrors which 
follow in their train." The prophetic office of Jesus Christ has thus been 
impugned, and the utterances of false prophets substituted for His words. 
In like manner has his office as the High Priest, Intercessor of men been 
assailed. The right and privilege of the Christian is thus declared by the 
Apostle : " Seeing that we have a Great High Priest that is passed into the 
heavens, Jesus the Son of God — not an High Priest who can not be touched 
with the feeling of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted like as we 
are — let us therefore come boldly" (meta parrhasias, free-spokenness, with 
the liberty of confiding children) "unto the throne of grace, that we may 
obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." But the exercise of 
this freedom has been forbidden. Limits have been prescribed in the Inter- 
cession of God's people and to the prerogatives of the Great High Priest. 
It has been forbidden to pray for this or that person or thing; it has been 
required to ask only for blessings upon this or that man, and to plead only 
for the success and safety of this or that cause or measure. It has been 
demanded that the mercy seat should only resound with imprecations upon 



MEMOIR OF S. E. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 323 

one class of men and benedictions upon another. The military sword has 
been thrust between the people of God and the throne of grace, and this 
impious attempt to restrict the prerogatives of the High Priest of the Church, 
and that freedom of access to himself which he has bestowed as an inalien- 
able right upon his people, has received the most unequivocal sanction of 
the great body of the Church. Nor less has the supreme authority of Christ 
in the exercise of his kingly office been trampled under foot by those who 
have sworn obedience to his Government. By the repeated acts of the 
several judicatories of the Church, including the General Assembly itself, 
the invasion of the freedom of Christ's Commonwealth by the civil and 
military powers has been not only allowed, but approved. The right of the 
secular power thus to interfere in the affairs of Christ's Kingdom has been 
I admitted, and the duty of submitting cheerfully to the exercise of this right 
enforced upon ministers and Church members. Thus the crown rights of 
Prince Immanuel have been surrendered to his enemies. The honor and 
glory of Zion is trailed in the dust. No longer can it be said that our 
Church serves "another king, one Jesus." As by the Jewish Church of 
old, so it seems to be again proclaimed with loud and angry vociferations by 
priest and people, "We have no king but Caesar." 

The whole mediatorial glory and dignity of the Messiah has been thus 
tarnished, and all the offices of Prophet, Priest and King, which he executes 
for the salvation of his people, are subverted and surrendered. If this, 
then, be not an apostasy, surely it needs but little to make it so, clearly, 
unmistakably, fatally. Nothing can prevent this but the blessing of 
Almighty God upon the efforts which his faithful witnesses may make to 
arouse the people to a reality of the extent of the evil and danger, and to bring 
them by prompt and decided action to purge the Church of the evil influence 
which has corrupted and betrayed her. 

Against this corruption and betrayal, therefore, we testify in the sight of 
God and angels and men. We wash our hands of all participation in its 
guilt We declare our deliberate purpose, trusting in God, who can save by 
few as well as by many, to use our best endeavors to bring back the Church 
of our fathers to her ancient purity and integrity, upon the foundation of 
the Apostles and Prophets, and under the banner of our only King, Priest 
and Prophet, the Lord Jesus Christ. In this endeavor we pledge ourselves 
to assist and co-operate with each other. And, by the grace of God, we 
will never abandon the effort, no matter what sacrifices it may require us to 
make, until we shall either have succeeded in reforming the Church and 



324 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

restoring her tarnished glory, or, failing in this, necessity shall be laid upon 
us, in obedience to the Apostolic command, to "withdraw " from those who 
have departed from the truth. Compelled to this course we will go, bearing 
with us the true Presbyterian Church, with her doctrine, order, worship and 
freedom, as they have been given her by her Divine Head, and transmitted 
from generation to generation by the hands of saints and confessors and 
martyrs. 

ACTION PROPOSED. 

And now, dear brethren in Christ, that without delay we may begin this 
arduous and most important work, to you who, like ourselves, are serv- 
ants of the Lord Christ, "who adhere to the plain doctrines of the cross 
as taught in the standards of the Westminster Assembly;" to all of you 
"who love your ancient and pure Constitution; " to you who are grieved 
for the afflictions of Jacob, and desire to restore our abused and corrupted 
Church to her simplicity, purity and liberty ; we, a portion of yourselves, 
ministers and elders of your Churches, would propose most respectfully 
and kindly, and yet most earnestly : 

1. "That we refuse to give our support to ministers, elders, agents, 
editors, teachers, or to those who are in any other capacity engaged in 
religious instruction or effort, who hold the preceding or similar heresies." 

2. That we refuse to take any part in the discussion or decision by any 
Ecclesiastical Court of those questions touching the policy and measures 
which do properly pertain to the civil commonwealth. 

3. That we will recognize no authority in the decision of questions of 
Christian doctrine or morals, or concerning the rights of the Church or the 
duties of its members, other than the written Word of God. 

4. That we will not take any oath prescribed by civil or military authority 
as a qualification for sitting in a Church Court, or for worshiping God, 
or for preaching the Gospel, or exercising any of the functions of the min- 
istry. Nor will we sit in any judicatory thus constituted. 

5. That we will extend our sympathy and aid, as we may have oppor- 
tunity, to all who in any way are subject to ecclesiastical censure or civil 
disabilities or penalties for their adherence to the principles we maintain and 
the repudiation of the errors in doctrine and practice against which we bear 
testimony. 

6. That we will not sustain, or execute, or in any manner assist in the 
execution of the orders passed at the last two Assemblies on the subject of 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 325 

slavery and loyalty ; and with reference to the conducting of missions in the 
Southern States, and with regard to the ministers, members and churches 
in the seceded and border States. 

7. That we will withhold our contributions from the Boards of the Church 
(with the exception of the Board of Foreign Missions) and from the Theo- 
logical Seminaries, until these institutions are rescued from the hands of 
those who are perverting them to the teaching and promulgation of prin- 
ciples subversive of the system they were founded and organized to uphold 
and disseminate. And we will appropriate the moneys thus withheld in 
aid of those instrumentalities which may be employed for maintaining and 
defending the principles affirmed in this declaration against the errors herein 
rejected and in assisting the impoverished ministers and Churches every- 
where throughout the country who agree with us in these essential doctrines 
in restoring and building up their congregations and houses of worship. 

8. We recommend that all Ministers, Elders, Church Sessions, Presby- 
teries and Synods, who approve this Declaration and Testimony, give their 
public adherence thereto in such manner as they shall prefer, and communi- 
cate their names, and when a Church court, a copy of their adhering act." 

9. ' ' That, inasmuch as our only hope of improvement and reformation in 
the affairs of our Church depends upon the interposition of Him who is 
King in Zion, that we will unceasingly and importunately supplicate a Throne 
of Grace for the return of that purity and peace the absence of which we 
now sorrowfully deplore." 

10. We do earnestly recommend that on the day of 

, A. D., 1865, a Convention be held in the city of 

, composed of all such Ministers and Ruling Elders as 

may concur in the views and sentiments of this Testimony, to deliberate and 
consult on the present state of our Church ; and to adopt such further 
measures as may seem best suited to restore her prostrated Standards, and 
vindicate the pure and peaceful religion of Jesus from the reproach which 
has been brought upon it through the faithlessness and corruption of its 
ministers and professors. 

"And now, brethren, our whole heart is laid open to you and to the 
world. If a majority of our Church are against us (as we have too much 
reason to apprehend it is), they will, we suppose, in the end, either see the 
infatuation of their course and retrace their steps, or they will at last attempt 
to cut us off. If the former, we shall bless the God of Jacob; if the latter, 
we desire to stand ready, for the sake of Christ and in support of the Testi- 



326 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



mony now made, to endure whatever suffering may be required of us by 
our Lord. We have' here frankly, openly and candidly laid before our 
erring brethren the course we are, by the grace of God, irrevocably de- 
termined to pursue. It is our steadfast aim to reform the Church, or so 
testify against its errors and defections until testimony will be no longer 
heard. And we commit the issue into the hands of Him who is over all, 
God blessed forever. Amen." 

But the Northern Church was not in the temper to be 
reformed. The dominant party, which had risen into power 
upon the whirlwind of political passions, was too much intoxi- 
cated with the lust of dominion to brook any restraint upon its 
arbitrary will. The overwhelming majority by which — through 
five years of intense excitement — it had succeeded in passing 
all its measures, gave assurance of an easy triumph over this 
feeble band, whose only weapon was a Declaration, on the un- 
popular side, against the madness and fury which were ruling 
the country. The St. Louis Assembly was opened in the usual 
form, at eleven o'clock on Thursday, May 17, 1866. At four 
in the afternoon the Moderator and Clerk were duly elected ; 
just then — at precisely the earliest moment that business could 
be introduced — the following resolution was offered : " 

Whereas, It is understood that the Presbytery of Louisville has openly 
defied the General Assembly and refused to submit to its orders, in a 
pamphlet adopted by it, of which the following is a specimen, viz. : "We 
will not sustain or execute or in any manner assist in the execution of the 
orders passed at the last two Assemblies on the subject of slavery and 
loyalty, and with reference to the conducting of missions in the Southern 
States, and with regard to the ministers, members and Churches in the 
seceded and border States ; " and, 

Whereas, Said Presbytery has commissioned and sent to this Assembly 
at least one Commissioner who, if the order of the last Assemby had been 
faithfully executed by said Presbytery, there is the strongest ground for 

Note. — Some portions of the above recommendation, tog-ether with most of the 
closing paragraph, are taken from the Act and Testimony, A. D. 1835, 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 327 

believing would have been suspended from the functions of the Gospel 
ministry; therefore, 

Resolved, That until the Assembly shall have examined and decided upon 
the conduct of said Presbytery, the Commissioners therefrom shall not be 
entitled to seats in this body. 

A committee of four Ministers and three Ruling Elders are 
appointed to look into matters and report. 

This committee of seven deliberate what further action 
shall be taken by the Assembly after ejecting the Commissioners 
of the Presbytery of Louisville. The committee propose that 
the Presbytery of Louisville be forthwith dissolved as " recusant " 
and " rebellious," and that a new Presbytery be constituted of 
certain parties named, who must, however, subscribe a formula 
avowing their disapproval of the Declaration and Testimony. 
Two months* of grace is also allowed to the signers of that 
wicked document to retract their error; after which, if still 
recusant, their pastoral relations are to be, ipso facto, dissolved. 
This form of discipline, however, was superseded by the famous 
Gurley substitute. It is embraced in the following resolutions : 

1. Resolved, That this General Assembly does hereby condemn the 
Declaration and Testimony as a slander against the Church, schismatical in 
its character and aims, and its adoption by any of our Church Courts as an 
act of rebellion against the authority of the General Assembly. 

2. Resolved, That the whole subject contemplated in this report, including 
the report itself, be referred to the next General Assembly. 

3. Resolved, That the signers of the Declaration and Testimony, and the 
members of the Presbytery of Louisville who voted to adopt that paper, 
be summoned to appear before the next General Assembly to answer for 
what they have done in this matter; and that, until their case is decided, 
they shall not be permitted to sit as members of any Church Court higher 
than the Session. 

4. Resolved, That if any Presbytery shall disregard this action of the 
General Assembly, and at any meeting shall enroll, as entitled to a seat or 
seats in the body, one or more of the persons designated in the preceding 
resolution and summoned to appear before the next General Assembly, then 



328 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

that Presbytery shall, ipso facto, be dissolved; and its ministers and elders 
who adhere to this action of the Assembly are hereby authorized and directed 
in such cases to take charge of the Presbyterial records, to retain the name 
and exercise all the authority and functions of the original Presbytery until 
the next meeting of the General Assembly. 

5. Resolved, That Synods, at their next stated meetings, in making 
up their rolls, shall be guided and governed by this action of the General 
Assembly. 

The Commissioners who represented Louisville Presbytery 
at St. Louis, in 1866, were Drs. Robinson and Wilson, min- 
isters, with Mark Hardin and Charles Wickliffe, elders. But 
these distinguished, godly and venerable men were cast out of 
the Assembly. 

Dr. McPheeters, at the meeting of the Louisville Presbytery, 
in June, 1866, immediately subsequent to the General Assem- 
bly, offered the following paper : 

Now, therefore, the Presbytery of Louisville, in view of these facts and 
the new and solemn issues which they force upon this court, adopt the fol- 
lowing minute : 

1. This Presbytery, being a constituent part of the Presbyterian Church, 
had a right to select and send Commissioners to the General Assembly "to 
consult, vote and determine on all things that "may" come before that 
body according to the principles and Constitution of the Presbyterian 
"Church and the Word of God, "and Presbytery solemnly affirms that this 
right is derived not from the General Assembly, but from the Lord Jesus 
Christ the Head of the Church, and that this right is secured to this body, 
not by the pleasure or opinion or vote of Commissioners representing other 
Presbyteries, but by the Constitution of the Church, which rests upon the 
revealed will of Christ ; and, therefore, for the Assembly to deny or wrest 
from this Presbytery this right, except by regular trial and discipline accord- 
ing to the Standards of the Church and the Word of God, is a usurpation of 
the rights of the Lord Christ, and is proceeding on a principle which not 
only violates, but subverts the Constitution of the Church. 

2. This Presbytery further declares that when this action was taken by 
the Assembly, this judicatory was in no way and in no sense under discipline 
or process of discipline, that no notice, citation or summons of any kind 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 329 

liad been served on this body, and, further, that the records of Presbytery- 
were not under review by the Assembly, nor were they even in their hands. 
There was not, therefore, and in the nature of the case there could not be, 
any ground or pretext for excluding the Commissioners of this Presbytery 
other than the assumption of an arbitrary and unlimited power by the 
Assembly, which needs but to be imitated by Synods, Presbyteries or Church 
Sessions to carry anarchy and ruin through the entire Church. 

3. This Presbytery further declares, that it is with profound sorrow and 
shame that they find the Highest Court of the Church, by a majority of 
201 to 50, adopting, and that under the operation of rules which shows that 
this majority considered the paper before them too plain to need discussion 
and too perfect to admit of amendment, a resolution excluding Louisville 
Presbytery from seats in the body ' 1 until the Assembly shall have examined 
and decided on the conduct of said Presbytery" — as though a Presbytery 
had no right to be present by Commissioners when its "conduct" was 
being "examined and decided" — as though, even if its Commissioners were 
in their seats, a Presbytery, according to our Constitution, could have its 
"conduct examined and decided upon " by a superior court, and yet the 
Presbytery know nothing of the whole thing until the "examination" is 
over and the "decision" rendered — as though in so vital and fundamental 
a matter as the right of representation any "examination and decision," 
with no Commissioners on the floor, no Presbytery cited to appear, and no 
records before the court, could be anything but a mockery of right and 
justice. 

4. This Presbytery, moreover, feels constrained to utter its solemn 
protest against a court of the Lord's House passing a preamble in which 
charges are instituted against a minister in good standing of a character so 
grave as to merit deposition from the ministry, and doing this not that the 
charges may be investigated, but that they may be put upon the minutes ; 
and while doing it, by a relentless and immediate enforcement of the previous 
question, effectually to close the lips of the accused against a single word of 
remonstrance, explanation or denial, as a cruel and wanton outrage upon 
Christian and ministerial character. 

Harsh and divisive measures rent the Church asunder; 
the Synods of Kentucky and Missouri split in twain. When 
the Assembly met, in i867, in Cincinnati, the first duty was to 
decide between the claims of rival Presbyteries contesting the 



33° MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

right of representation in that Court. This matter, together 
with all others relating to the signers of the Declaration and 
Testimony, was referred to a committee of ten. Pending the 
discussion of its report the claimants for contested seats were 
heard, and two of the Declaration signers appeared in obedience 
to citation and offered their defense ; after which, by the over- 
whelming vote of 261 to 4, the paper was adopted which made 
a final disposition of all these issues. By one sweeping sen- 
tence of outlawry two Synods and twelve Presbyteries in the 
States of Kentucky and Missouri, embracing some 150 min- 
isters, 250 Churches, 500 Ruling Elders and 1,500 communi- 
cants, were disowned and dropped. Then follows, as a matter 
of course, the grace of reconstruction out of all this chaos. 
All members of these u unlawful organizations," if not signers of 
the Declaration, may be received into the bosom of the Church 
upon the simple expression, to the proper Presbytery, of a desire 
to adhere ; but those who had put their signature to this naughty 
instrument must first purge themselves by the following formula 
of abjuration : 

I, A B , hereby declare my desire to adhere to the Presbyterian 

Church, in the United States of America; and do now promise to render 
due obedience in the Lord to the authority of all its Courts, embracing the 
Presbytery, the Synod, and the General Assembly; and to this end, inas- 
much as the last General Assembly pronounced the aforesaid Declaraion and 
Testimony to be a slander against the Church, schismatical in its character 
and aims, and its adoption by any of our Church Courts an act of rebellion 
against the authority of the General Assembly, I do hereby disclaim that I 
had any intention to rebel against or renounce the authority of the General 
Assembly in signing the Declaration and Testimony, and I hereby with- 
draw all language deemed by the General Assembly offensive or disre- 
spectful in which its sentiments are expressed. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



331 



CHAPTER XVII. 

PASTORAL WORK AT MULBERRY. 

In the spring of 1865, as before remarked, Dr. McPheeters 
received and accepted a call to Mulberry, Kentucky. This 
Church is situated in the heart of a fine agricultural region, and 
its members are noted for kindness to the servants of Christ, 
"in connection with a steadfast adherence to the truth. This 
is the spot where the Rev. Archibald Cameron, called the 
Father of Presbyterianism in Shelby county, whose praise was 
in all the Churches for sound doctrine, simple faith and great 
abilities, had his home. The people at an early day were 
taught from the lips of "this Prince and great man in Israel." 
The foundations which he laid in the blessed doctrine of the 
" Crown and Covenant " could not be easily effaced ; for he 
" walked about Zion and went round about her ; he told the 
towers thereof, marked well her bulwarks and considered well 
her palaces, that the daughters of Judah might be glad and tell 
it to the generation following." When this able and faithful 
minister of the New Testament " fell on sleep " his mantle 
descended upon others who did not shun to declare the whole 
counsel of God. Such men as Paxton and Wilson were his 
worthy successors. And now, when the land mourns, the saintly 
but persecuted McPheeters finds a refuge and shelter in the 
bosom of this favored and sympathizing congregation. Aad 
from the moment that he came the people " were knit to the 
hunted martyr as the soul of Jonathan to the soul of David, 
and they took him that day and would let him go no more " 



33 2 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

until the young men that loved him bore his precious dust to a 
peaceful resting place in the grave. 

At no period of life could Dr. McPheeters have been con- 
sidered physically robust. The jewel was set in a fine but 
delicate casket. The work which he did in St. Louis previous 
to the war taxed bodily strength to the utmost. The manu- 
script preparations which remain attest most clearly that the 
Pine street congregation were served from Sabbath to Sabbath 
with " well beaten oil." These " labors abundant," added to 
engagements from without, weighed heavily upon a constitu- 
tion naturally fragile. But few individuals outside of the 
ministry comprehend the " weariness, watchings and painful- 
ness " which come daily upon the conscientious pastor. Beside 
the legitimate care of the flock, he is often hindered, and even 
persecuted, by unreasonable men; for happy indeed is the 
Church that does not contain in its bosom a prating Diotrephes, 
a carping Iscariot, or some morbidly sensitive member who, des- 
titute of self-respect, worries every company that he enters with 
a history of pastoral oversights and congregational neglect. The 
failing health of Dr. McPheeters called for rest and recreation ; 
hence the visit to New Mexico. He was absent a year; and 
if on his return the pastor had been permitted, without moles- 
tation, to preach Christ and Him crucified, all might have gone 
well ; but to the wonted duties of a pastorate were superadded 
the extraordinary responsibilities necessarily imposed by a 
frightful national conflict, and, as though this was not enough, 
persecution began its diabolical work. The faithful, gentle 
shepherd was hunted like a beast of the mountains, not by 
Caesar himself, but by Caesar "evil entreated" by "false 
brethren." The shaft of the hunter was well aimed, and 
pierced with precision the flesh of the victim. It was seen, 
alas ! too soon, that the " pitcher had lyen broken at the foun- 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



333 



tain." And thus, worn and feeble, the noble exile entered on 
labor in his new field at Mulberry. 

A pastor's work in the quiet country does not afford much 
variety of incident for the pen of the biographer. But in a 
field like this, to a minister who has the good sense and piety 
to cultivate it properly, there are peculiar advantages and ele- 
vated joys ; for outside of the dust and hurry of a great city 
are leisure and befitting opportunity to commune with one's 
own soul and God, while the intercourse with an unpretending 
but sensible people is sincere, endearing and satisfactory. 
Situated in the center of a rural district a preacher worthy of 
the name is literally the parson, or person to whom all eyes are 
turned with deference and respect ; and if the pastor does not 
gain influence and find a cordial welcome at every fire side, 
the fault unquestionably is with himself, for the population 
here are affectionate and confiding, and the removal or death 
of the minister is regarded with anxiety and lamented with 
tears. 

Dr. McPheeters was panting under the trials and perplexities 
of the past; but now, after four years of turmoil, he finds a 
home in a peaceful agricultural region, far removed from the 
din and business of the crowded city. And friends fondly 
hoped that change of scene, in connection with gentle labors 
in the open air, would reinvigorate the wasted energies of both 
body and mind. For a year or more the pastor had sufficient 
strength to visit, to a limited extent at least, the congregation 
at their own homes ; but, in addition, from the very beginning, 
he threw the doors of the parsonage wide open and invited all 
to enter. And whatever the anxiety or sorrow, the soul of the 
sufferer, when it looked upon the solemn, benignant face of the 
preacher, realized in a moment that this was no mere " profes- 
sional " teacher, but a man " come from God " to bind up the 



334 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



broken in heart, to comfort the mourner, and to point by au- 
thority and with a brother's sympathies the weary and heavy 
laden to Christ. 

On September 15, 1865, Dr. J. H. Brookes wrote to Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters and enclosed him an " extract from minutes of Pres- 
bytery of St. Louis," signed by Stated Clerk. The minutes 
are as follows : 

EXTRACT FROM MINUTES OF PRESBYTERY OF ST. LOUIS, IN SESSION AT 
WASHINGTON, MO., SEPT. 7, 1865. 

This being the first regular meeting enjoyed by this body for a length of 
time free from any obstruction from without, the Presbytery feel bound to 
record their view of a case of great importance, which resulted in the dis- 
solution of the relation existing between Rev. Dr. McPheeters and the Pine 
Street Church, and, finally, in a prohibition of his preaching in that Church. 
The facts are briefly these : 

On the 15th of May, 1863, a pro-re-nata meeting, which initiated the 
proceedings, was called almost immediately after a full regular meeting, and 
at a time of wide-spread excitement and alarm in the country, when the 
minds of men were eminently unfitted for a calm consideration and judicious 
adjustment of grave questions, and when Dr. McPheeters was prevented 
from attending by military authority, and, therefore, had no opportunity for 
defense. 

On the 27th of May, 1863, a meeting of Pine Street Church was held, 
when it was determined, by a vote of 91 to 56, not to agree to a dissolution 
of the relation. After this, and near the hour of midnight, the majority 
having left the house, the minority appointed Mr. George P. Strong as 
Commissioner to represent the Church, and directed him to urge the dis- 
solution of the pastoral relation. 

On the 22d of June, 1863, another meeting of Pine Street Church was 
held, when it was resolved, by a large majority, that unless Mr. George 
P. Strong, as the Commissioner of this congregation, can and will, in good 
faith, present and urge upon Presbytery the voice and wishes of the congre- 
gation as expressed by the resolution adopted on the motion of Captain 
Greene, on a fair vote of 91 to 56, he be requested to resign his trust as 
Commissioner. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



335 



On the evening of June 23, 1863, the Presbytery met, and Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters, through Mr. Brookes, asked leave to withdraw his resignation which 
had been placed in the hands of Presbytery at its firo-7'e-nafa meeting on 
the 15th of June. On motion, it was resolved, that he have leave to with- 
draw his paper. Subsequently, Mr. Brookes, acting for Dr. McPheeters, 
and, as was understood, in accordance with his wishes, withdrew the request 
to have the Presbytery consider the resignation not in their hands, and left 
the whole matter to be decided by them as they might deem best. Upon 
this Presbytery dissolved the relation. 

On the 6th of April, 1864, Presbytery, meeting under special military 
order No. 62, and consisting of 18 members out of about 60, and at the 
request of only 9 members of Pine Street Church out of a membership of 
308, ordered Dr. McPheeters to abstain from further occupancy of Pine 
Street pulpit, to which he had been invited by his Session and a large ma- 
jority of his Church during the pendency of his case before the Superior 
courts. Therefore, resolved, 

1. That the action restraining Dr. McPheeters from preaching in the Pine 
Street Church be, and is now, revoked. 

2. That we extend our sincerest sympathy to Dr. McPheeters in any trial 
and suffering he may have endured consequent upon the dissolution of the 
pastoral relation between him and the Pine Street Church, and also that we 
do disclaim any intention of personal unkindness to him in any action on 
the part of this Presbytery. 

3. That the conduct of Mr. Strong, in persisting to represent the Church 
contrary to the will of the majority, and the action of Presbytery in per- 
mitting him to appear before them as the Church representative, merit the 
strongest disapprobation of Presbytery. 

Morover, it is but simple justice to record that at the first 
opportunity which presented itself, after the removal of bayo- 
nets, the Pine Street congregation, by an overwhelming majority, 
made an earnest and heartfelt call upon Dr. McPheeters to re- 
turn and minister as pastor to the people from whom, contrary 
to their wishes, he had been unrighteously torn by the cruel 
hand of ecclesiastico-military power. This call was forwarded 
to Dr. McPheeters in the spring of 1866. He determined at 
once to visit St. Louis. The reunion was cordial and delight- 



336 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

ful, but, after prayerful consideration, he wisely concluded that 
a wasted physical system could no longer be adequate to the 
urgent demands of so important a charge in a large and grow- 
ing city. The invitation, so tenderly and generously offered, 
was therefore declined. 

Winter, spring and summer of another year, 1866, glided 
peacefully by as " this Disciple whom Jesus loved" visited 
from house to house, and on every Sabbath day dispensed the 
gospel of the grace of God, in its sweetness and simplicity, to 
a company of solemn and eager listeners. But when the 
autumn came the physician enjoined the preacher, and he was 
compelled to modify his plan of labor. Dr. McPheeters, now 
confined to bed, yearned with no less insatiable desire over the 
souls committed to his charge. Hence, when he could go no 
more out, the chamber where the pastor lay was turned into 
a Bethel. The congregation might come to him if he could 
not go to them. Bible classes were formed, prayer meetings 
established, and these were followed by exhortations which can 
never be forgotten. At every meeting the frail, wan laborer 
went forth weeping, sowing precious seed. He sowed beside 
all waters, in dark days as in bright, " giving a portion to seven 
and also to eight." The people saw and heard with amaze- 
ment as the truth fell with such power from the lips of this sick 
and suffering man. 

During the winter and spring of 1867 it became manifest 
that the glory of the Lord was about to fill the Tabenacle. 
Faithful ones began to cry, " Oh ! that we knew where we 
might find Him, that we might come even to His seat," whilst 
there were certain stricken souls that knelt at the bedside of 
the pastor and said, " Sir, we would see Jesus." The things 
which came to pass there in those days deeply impressed the 
thoughtful, and all were amazed at the mighty power of God. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



337 



Surely here was no strange fire offered on the Lord's altars, but 
" the entrance of God's word gave light." 

In the midst of this precious season of revival the steps of 
an evangelist were turned in the direction of Mulberry. The 
sick and wearied pastor needed help, now that the fields were 
white, and the Great Head of the Church provided a laborer 
to go in for a season to reap in the harvest. Rev. Robert 
Nail came at a favorable moment. The way was thoroughly 
prepared, and many hearts waited with desire " for the king- 
dom of God." Dr. Nail preached for several days to the 
congregation, and then went forward to other appointments. 
But the interest steadily increased, and "the word of God 
grew and multiplied." On the nth of May Dr. McPheeters 
addressed the following letter to the brother who had assisted 
him : 

" You requested to hear from us after our meeting to-day, 
and I drop you a line. The meeting was largely attended — 
room full ; several young men present who did not attend the 
first meeting. Brother Grasty happened to be here and 
assisted me. I explained the plan of salvation in a simple, 
earnest way, and pressed upon them, in a calm manner, the 
necessity of closing at once with the offer of Christ. Brother 
Grasty followed with a few very appropriate remarks. I never 
saw a more solemnly thoughtful assembly. After detaining 
them as long as I felt it right I dismissed the meeting, inviting 
them to call and see me individually at such times as they 
could. But hardly one moved ; many wept aloud ; and one 
by one they came and, sitting by me, laid open their hearts to 
me, asking for instruction and prayer. I have never seen any- 
thing like it. Many found hope — how many I can not say — 
others seemed e to see men as trees walking.' 

" The meeting did not adjourn until the Elder came and told 
22 



33* 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



them it was time to disperse. Many made engagements to see 
me to-morrow. Some, who were formerly members of the 
Church, but backsliding, were here deeply affected, desiring 
prayers and instruction. My heart is full. My cup runneth 
over. It was of the Lord that you were sent here, and we will 
always remember it with gratitude and joy. May the blessing 
of God, sent us by you, return tenfold on you. I still do not 
know if I may expect Dr. Robinson next Sunday week (third 
Sunday). If you can do so, see him and urge his coming, if 
possible." 

Elder John C. Brown, in a postscript, adds : 

" It was the most impressive scene of my life. At the hour 
the young people came in, almost by families, to the number of 
22, and surrounded our dear pastor's bed. He prayed and sung 
and gave us one of the most impressive exhortations, setting 
forth the plan of salvation in its clearest light, occupying about 
an hour or so, and dismissed. A few of us got up to go, but 
the anxious stood in the room. The Lord was there. They 
gathered around our pastor's bed and knelt down. He would 
take them by the hand, some in the deepest distress and some 
rejoicing in hope. O, I never heard our Master set forth so 
impressively and with such unction. They came up two or 
three at a time and knelt by his bed, until almost the last one 
came up. We had prayer again ; then he prayed for them. 
O, it would have delighted your soul to have been there. 
When I got them to leave I went to the Doctor to know if he 
was exhausted. 6 O,' he said, 6 1 am better, and not the least 
exhausted.' O, sir, if you could have seen that man of God 
lying on his back, with his long gray beard, and his hands 
stretched to heaven, and the love of God impressed on his 
countenance, pleading with his Savior for sinners, it would have 
left impressions that could never have been erased. I have 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



339 



tried to describe the scene, but it is a failure. May the Lord 
bless you in your labors." 

At the memorable scene described above the writer was 
present, and he very much doubts if at that hour, in all this 
sin-burdened world, there could be found a holier spot than the 
chamber of this faithful witness for the truth of Jesus, as the 
glory of God descended and the Shekinah dwelt between the 
wings of the cherubim which overshadowed the mercy-seat. 
The pastor unfolded in earnest, solemn, simple words the 
scheme of redemption. His utterance was often choked and 
the tears flowed freely as he expatiated upon the person, work 
and loveliness of Christ. He told the weary and heavy-laden 
that " the doing was all done," and that the Master " stood and 
called." He turned over and over again, in one apt illustra- 
tion after another, the sinner's guilt and inability, while the 
burdened soul was pointed, with ineffable yearning and tender- 
ness, to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the 
world. The distressed and weeping ones around the couch of 
the minister were urged to submit at once to the righteousness 
of God, to venture wholly upon Christ. And with many other 
words did he testify and exhort, saying, " Save yourselves from 
this untoward generation." Many gladly received his word, 
fear came upon every soul, and the glory of God filled the 
house. Not a few will take with them to the grave the memory 
of the gracious words which were spoken that day ; and how 
the under-shepherd, in imitation of the Master, " beginning at 
Moses and all the Prophets, expounded unto them in all the 
Scriptures the things concerning Jesus, until the hearts of these 
Disciples burned within them as he talked with them by the 
way." 

These things came to pass at Mulberry in the spring of 1867. 
For weary months, by command of physicians, the pastor 



34° MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

reclined upon an invalid bed in the fond hope that this mechan- 
ical position might so far relieve the ailing part as to open up 
a natural prospect for future and permanent restoration. But, 
alas ! these expectations were baffled. The mind of the pastor 
was perplexed. The congregation, now more than ever, needed 
a minister to go in and out among them to break the bread of 
life. The exigencies of the fold, at this hour, required a watchful 
hand to lead the new-born lambs in " green pastures beside the 
gently flowing streams." Is the present pastor, shut in his 
chamber, sufficient for these things ? The question oppressed 
his mind, and Dr. McPheeters seriously and conscientiously 
meditated a resignation. But when his thoughts upon this 
subject were laid bare to the Elders, it was ascertained that a 
step of this nature would be productive only of sorrow and 
consternation to a confiding and satisfied people. Throughout 
the entire congregation there was not a whisper of discontent, 
but every one, from the oldest to the youngest, preferred their 
present noble, wise and loving minister, " with his often infirmi- 
ties/' to any other " overseer " the Church could bestow. In 
the meantime, however, the preacher was quietly revolving a 
scheme of his own. It has been seen already how the Bible 
class and prayer meeting were statedly held in the room of the 
pastor, while every member of the flock was invited, without 
limit, to enter the door of the manse ; and now, with these 
matters arranged and perfected, only one thing more could be 
indispensable to a complete organization — this was the preached 
Word, on the Sabbath day, in the sanctuary itself. Could this 
be accomplished ? The pastor had his plans. Though sorely 
afflicted bodily, the voice of the preacher remained clear and 
strong. He could not stand or sit, but why could he not preach 
to the people in a recumbent posture ? At any rate, this method 
should be tried. Straightway the purpose is announced and 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



341 



f preparations made. Laid upon a well-fitting lounge, the pastor 
is taken up by careful hands and lifted into an ambulance made 
ready at the door. Slowly and carefully the vehicle moves 
forward to the little church that stands off yonder, two miles, 
in the forest. The house of God is reached safely, and the 
minister, without serious discomfort, finds himself once again 
face to face with the assembly of the saints. The people are 
amazed, but the heart of the pastor is filled with joy. Just 
there, in front of the pulpit, on a lowly bed, the preacher dis- 
coursed of the great salvation till even the old and gray-headed 
" glorified God, saying, we never saw it on this wise." 

This experiment surpassed the expectations of the most 
sanguine. And now, that the way was opened to the sanctuary, 
the pastor's heart overflowed with gratitude. When the Sabbath 
day came, no ordinary difficulty could keep him home. He 
did not " regard the clouds.'' The prospect of reunion with 
his people in the "holy place" on Sabbath day imparted 
strength for all the burdens of the week. A shade of gloom 
or disappointment rarely ever passed over his countenance ex- 
cept when some occurrence "at feeding time" detained the 
shepherd from his flock. He felt the poorer if even one oppor- 
tunity was lost. To preach Christ and Him crucified was the 
joy and crown of this man's life. And now, that so many days 
in God's house had been foregone on account of bodily in- 
firmity, the preacher regarded the present and future with a 
holy jealousy. He remarked to an Elder : " Brother Brown, 
there was a time when it gave me great pleasure to welcome a 
minister to my pulpit, but now when a brother preaches for me 
/ feel that he has iake?i the bread out of my month" Such was 
the zeal of a prophet of the Lord in these days. Trials only 
made the promise sweet. And as the broken alabaster-box of 
ointment very precious poured upon the head of Jesus in the 



342 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



house of Simon the leper filled the room with its costly odor, 
so the life of this martyr, crushed out by persecution, yields 
a gracious fragrance which shall animate the Church of God 
for many days. On the other hand, " suffering only made his 
crown more splendid — gave it a majesty of shine and an im- 
perial glory." 

After sermon Sabbath morning it was delightful to witness 
the interest which every one manifested about the comfort of 
" the Doctor," as the pastor was almost universally called. 
Young and old must gain a shake of the hand and hear it from 
the minister's own lips that the labors of the day had not dis- 
tressed or overtaxed him. There stood at his head a mother 
in Israel, yonder at his feet a gentle child waiting the genial 
summons, while all around were loving hearts vying with each 
other in offices of kindness. That was the favored young man 
who stood nearest to the " Doctor " when the narrow bed with 
its cherished occupant had to be lifted into the ambulance pre- 
paratory to the journey homeward. Mulberry parsonage was 
a spot toward which the step even of a stranger was attracted 
in those days. The fame of the good man spread abroad and 
the passer-by felt constrained to turn in and behold the coun- 
tenance of one whose manner of life was such a strange rebuke 
in a generation overburdened with evil devices. And no one 
who entered that dwelling for an hour can ever forget the im- 
pressions made by the prophet in his chamber. There lay a 
figure emaciated and bowed by sickness — with all reasonable 
prospect of restoration entirely gone — the world and society as 
he once knew them definitely shut out, and yet the counte- 
nance of that frail invalid not only indicates resignation, but 
there is an expression of peace and blessed satisfaction that 
excited wonder and admiration in every beholder. Said a man, 
whose name is known all through the land, " I can get over 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



343 



every argument in favor of Christianity but the life of McPhee- 
ters." The writer remembers with joy and thankfulness his own 
oft-repeated visits to the parsonage of Mulberry. Many a time 
has he held long and precious intercourse with his departed 
friend about the " affairs of the kingdom." When he was 
engaged upon the little volume, " Faith's Battles and Victories," 
Dr. McPheeters manifested the liveliest interest, and the MSS. 
of that book, page after page, underwent his careful inspection, 
and the sentiments throughout were heartily endorsed. Indeed, 
the worthies of that olden time who, " through faith, subdued 
kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped 
the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the 
edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed 
valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens," was 
the society in which this witness for truth in the present day 
delighted to linger. 

It was not in the company of strangers and before the eye 
of the multitude that Dr. McPheeters appeared to the greatest 
advantage ; but in the society of friends, in the sweet circle of 
home, with wife and children about him, the husband and 
father poured out most freely the riches of his noble nature. 
These reunions of the household gave opportunity for wit, re- 
partee, pathos and words of wisdom not easily forgotten. And 
even when death had done its work the same sweetness of ex- 
pression lingered upon the features. Over and over again a 
gentle child stole softly and alone to the spot where the body 
lay and caressed with touching familiarity and affection the 
remains of her departed father, for the grim monster himself 
could not clothe with terror the fair palace where sympathy and 
love had so richly abided. True, the occupant was fled, but 
the memorials which remained were endearing and precious. 
To the daughter, who had so often been folded in love, that 



344 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



clay tabernacle, although pulseless and cold, could not be 
associated with a thought either of repugnance or alarm. With 
a casket so fair, it was difficult to believe that the jewel was 
gone. 

In August of 1868, Louisville Presbytery met in Shelby ville, 
and Dr. McPheeters attended. After his return to Mulberry, 
on Aug. 25, he wrote to his brother, Dr. W. M. McPheeters. 

My Dear Brother : While the children are at the Fair and it is quiet, 
I will drop you a line to report on matters generally, though in fact I have 
but little to say of any importance. I continue to walk about the house a 
little and go regularly to the table, but I am not able to sit up long at a 
time and generally keep my lounge. I hardly know whether or not I 
should try to sit up more than I do. I am very short winded, and I think 
if I were to sit an hour, especially without my brace, that it would give me 
pain in my back or sides. I continue to preach on my couch and go out 
visiting in the same way. I have lately bought me a very comfortable am- 
bulance. ... I went to Presbytery last week, in Shelbyville, on my 
couch. It was very pleasant to meet the brethren once more. The Shelby- 
ville people expressed a strong desire to have me preach, and had made all 
the arrangements, but, of course, I declined, when there were so many on 
their feet to do it better. I have no doubt there would have been many 
more anxious to hear me if I had stood on my head and preached, than 
wanted to hear a sermon from a preacher lying on a couch. . . . Tell 
Maggie that we have had a great many young people on Mulberry this 
summer, and they have had a gay time, especially at the Bird's nest. . . . 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



345 



CHAPTEE XVIII. 

FINAL VISIT TO ST. LOU I S L AST DAYS. 

In 1869, when summer came, the distinguished invalid was 
urged by friends to apply to the highest medical sources the 
country could furnish. It was thought by some that if a brace 
should be fitted to the spine by scientific hands, the prospect 
for comfort, locomotion and final recovery might be greatly 
enhanced. At first it was contemplated to call in the services 
of an eminent surgeon from the city of New York. But, after 
the matter, in all its bearings, had been calmly considered, Dr. 
McPheeters concluded, on his own judgment, to visit his old 
congregation in the city of St. Louis, and to rely upon the skill 
of the medical men there. This visit was made, and the pastor 
found himself once again in the very bosom of a flock from 
whose embraces he had been torn, four years before, by the 
relentless decision of the Assembly of Newark. During his 
four weeks' stay there were many touching reunions. The 
scattered fold crowded about the bed of a shepherd who had 
not only fed them in happier days, but who, in times of peril, 
counted not his own life dear so that those committed to his 
care might be saved. 

During his sojourn an incident occurred which is not only 
significant, but highly suggestive. A member of Pine Street 
Church who joined in the wicked persecution of other days 
now came to the couch of the pastor and said, " Dr. Mc- 
Pheeters, I was glad when they told me that you were coming 
to St. Louis, for I wanted to see you face to face once more 



346 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

in this world. I was just seriously meditating a visit to Ken- 
tucky for this very purpose. I was one of your persecutors, 
and the thought of it has weighed heavily on my conscience. 
I come now to confess all and to beg an injured man's forgive- 
ness." Dr. McPheeters, with tears in his eyes, replied: "I 
forgive you with all my heart, as I hope to be forgiven ; but I 
wish all men to understand, that now, after four years for calm 
thought, I hold to every doctrine and principle for which I have 
testified in the past. My views in this respect have not under- 
gone the slightest change." 

During this visit friends were kind and physicians did their 
utmost, but the shaft of disease had gone down too deep, and 
the results were not satisfactory. When the allotted time ex- 
pired Dr. McPheeters made ready to depart, " and they all 
wept sore," sorrowing most of all because they should see his 
face no more. 

The pastor is now once again in his quiet home at Mulberry. 
The physical frame was rapidly wearing out, and a conscious- 
ness that the shadows were lengthening quickened the purpose 
of the laborer to work while it was day. " A little while " and 
he whose life has been as " a garden of spices " shall go to his 
place, and the " world will seem poorer." All through the 
autumn of 1869, and far into the winter of 1870, the pastor 
labored steadily on. Not until the month of February did " the 
grasshopper become a burden." The hand upon the dial- 
plate of God's ordination now pointed to the hour when the 
last sermon of this man should be preached. The text was 
Luke xii. 16-21; the subject, " The rich fool." The discourse 
ended, the pastor carefully folded the MSS., and, turning to 
Elder John Brown, said, " Here, take this ; I give it to you." 
This preacher, neither here nor elsewhere, will ever need a 
manuscript more. His commission within these walls is 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETRS, D. D. 



347 



finished. He goes forth hence to work in other fields. Here 
is food for solemn thought, if the wicked world would think. 
O, ye gentle friends, gather to-day at the couch of your pastor, 
for it is the last time. The young men shall bear him out 
presently, and he will return again only when the " silver cord 
is loosed and the golden bowl is broken." Five years ago he 
came to the people here with God's message on his lips. The 
words which were given him to speak have been spoken, and 
the angel, in the Book of God, has made the fearful entry. 
The past is now gone, and neither principalities nor powers can 
recall a single Sabbath, with opportunity to improve its once 
neglected privileges. O, ye listless ones, if the voice of the 
beloved pastor has not been heard in the sanctuary in months 
that have fled, ponder it solemnly now, for that slowly moving 
wagon yonder takes away a watchman whose warning voice 
shall never again be lifted in any assembly of earth. 

The next few weeks were filled with anxiety. The news 
flew that " the Doctor " was failing rapidly. The parsonage 
was besieged day after day with eager inquirers. In the mean- 
while Dr. Frederick, the beloved physician — endeared to the 
whole household by oft-repeated acts of kindness, and whose 
professional treatment of Dr. McPheeters had been endorsed 
by men of the highest scientific attainment — intermitted no 
effort to eradicate disease and alleviate suffering. But what 
can skill or science do when the voice of God and the law of 
nature rise and combine against it ? The hour had come. The 
malady progresses steadily. 

There were periods when Dr. McPheeters suffered greatly. 
The vessel was breaking in every part. No strength remained. 
Mrs. McPheeters says : " On Saturday night, the 6th of March, 
my husband began to sink rapidly, and speedy dissolution 
seemed to be indicated. When he saw the distress on my 



343 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



countenance he calmly said, and with authority, ' My wife, stay 
yourself on the Lord.' For several hours during that night, 
after this remark, he apparently fell into a half dreamy state ; 
his pulse gone, and all hope gone that he would last till morning. 
During the time I aroused him, repeating those words of Jesus, 
i Let not your heart be troubled/ When I came to the words, 
' 1 will come again and receive you unto myself,' he said, 
6 That's true, my dear wife ; but if it is God's will I will remain 
with you awhile longer.' Then, turning to the doctor, he said, 
<A servant should be at his Master's command, willing to go if 
he bid, willing to stay if he bid. That's right ; is it not, Doctor ?' 
I then asked him if he would like for Dr. Hill to pray with him. 
He replied, ' Yes,' and meekly folded his hands. The Doctor 
asked if he heard him. He answered, ' Yes.' He then closed 
his eyes, and in a half waking condition was again among his 
people in St. Louis, moderating a meeting for them — calling 
some of them by name. Soon after this his sleep became quiet, 
his pulse returned, and when he awoke again, though death 
with its relentless grasp held, without dispute, control in his 
body, the mind which had been for so many years the light of 
his household was free and unclouded, and during the whole 
day the finishing of his faith by the great Author of it was 
grand to look upon. A friend who w r atched him hourly from 
that dark Saturday night till his eyes were closed in death said, 
6 1 hate to go back again from this room to the world ;' feeling 
that in that room he had stood so near the gate to the Celestial 
City and caught such glimpses of its glory that, with the great 
dreamer, he had almost wished himself among them there." 

On Sunday morning he seemed to rally a little, and at his 
request was sung — 



" Mercy, O thou Son of David." 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



349 



He said, " How I love that old tune ; and the words, how 
they cover me all over with glory as they dovetail in with each 
other.' While they sang " Rock of Ages," he expressed, by 
the motion and pressure of his hand, his pleasure and concur- 
rence in the petitions. He then began to speak of all the 
glory and greatness of Christ as a Savior, and seemed to labor 
for words expressive enough of his convictions of Christ's 
greatness as a Savior; and, as though taking this opportunity to 
leave his final testimony, he said : " Now, I am in no ecstasy, 
nor under excitement of any kind, but calm as if I were writing 
a business paper; and I say Jesus Christ is just such a Savior 
as, intellectually, spiritually and infinitely, meets my full appro- 
bation. He is my infinite, infinite trust; this (raising his hand 
as one testifying in Court) is my testimony, living or dying." 

He spoke cheerfully and tenderly to the children and young 
people, and in that peculiar method which marked his utter- 
ances in days of health he sent his messages. Referring to a 
dearly beloved sister in North Carolina, afflicted in a somewhat 
similar manner as himself, he said : " Write sister Kate and tell 
her, from me, not to allow herself to be worried and frightened 
by the stories she hears of the horrors and darkness of dying ; 
that I say there is not a word of truth in it, for I am now at 
the very place myself and, with Jesus here, find it a happy way. 
And I say this not because I am a good man, for I am not, 
but only a poor, miserable sinner; yet I have such a mighty 
Savior — -mighty and glorious — with His own eternal arms 
around me. And He did not just begin to love me lately, but 
before, when yet a sinner, and before and before — back into 
eternity." 

" Tell Robinson," was another message, " I want him to 
preach my funeral, and not to have any stuff about me in it ; 
let it all be about Christ." When John Brown, Jr., whom he 



35° 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



ever addressed in affectionate playfulness as " Mr. Johnny," 
came in, he remarked, speaking to him of the goodness of his 
Savior: "The only care I have had, Mr. Johnny, as I approached 
this hour, was leaving my wife and children, and He is so good 
He has taken all that away, so that I can leave them with Him. 
O, it is not that I am good, for I am such a sinner, but I have 
such a mighty Savior ! Johnny, study the Bible closely and 
you will find what a mighty Savior He is." 

When the poor colored servant came to his bedside, saying, 
" Master, I am sorry to see you suffer so," he said, taking her 
hand, " Yes, Phoebe, I am suffering, but Jesus gives me songs 
in the night and helps me to suffer joyfully, joyfully, and He 
will do just the same for you, Phoebe, if you will do just like 
me. When you sin, go and ask Him and He will blot it all out, 
and when you sin again (for you will sin), then just go again. 
I have been a great sinner, and sometimes felt much ashamed 
to have to go back so often to ask Him to blot out more sins ; 
but He always did it. Now, remember this way of doing with 
sin, Phoebe, and you will be able, like me, to suffer joyfully." 

On Sunday night he seemed to be sinking rapidly, and when 
sympathy was expressed, he whispered, " Jesus is leading me ; 
He will lead me all right." And through the night and during 
the forenoon of Monday, though most of the time in dreamy 
half delirium, he was often heard whispering, "All is well; 
peace, peace." In the afternoon he said to his wife : " The 
doctor has told me all along that death is near, but I did not 
feel so till now ; I am now conscious that I am going away. 
I wish you, dear wife, to take the children and use your best 
judgment. Ask Christ to help you, and I am going to ask 
Him, too." The arrival of his brother, Dr. W. M. McPheeters, 
on the evening of this day greatly comforted him. 

During the early part of Tuesday he was thought to be about 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 35 1 

to die immediately, but he rallied again about noon and in the 
evening was able to converse in a whisper with his friend Dr. 
Robinson, who had just arrived. " I am so glad, Robinson," 
was his salutation, " that you got here before I got away. I 
longed to see you, but did not think I would." And, in response 
to the remark of his friend expressing regret at the shortening 
of a ministry so much blessed, as he had lately seen the evidence 
of it in St. Louis engraved in the life and character of many 
children of God, he whispered, " Yes, the Lord has kept being 
so good to me in that way that it humbles me in the dust that 
I should be such an ungrateful sinner." 

Subsequently, calling Dr. Robinson to his bedside again, he 
said : " I have loved you with a true heart-love as one that has 
testified with me for Christ as the glorious King and Head in 
His Church ; Christ as the Lord our righteousness, obeying for 
us, suffering the curse for us, doing all for us ; and I want you 
to give my charge to all the brethren to hold up Christ faith- 
fully. Tell them that, after preaching the Gospel more than 
twenty years and believing it to be true, now I know it to be 
true, and that He is mighty to save, as He has said He is. 
Now, pray again with me; then good-bye." 

Shortly after this he dropped into apparent unconsciousness, 
and so continued generally till morning, when his friend Dr. S. 
R. Wilson visited him. Dr. Wilson says : " I spent the Wed- 
nesday on which he died by his bedside. When I entered his 
room, about nine o'clock in the morning, he said to me : 1 1 am 
glad to see you ; it always gives me pleasure to see you. I am 
glad to have fought by your side for the truth.' I said, ' You are 
going to get your release from service sooner than the rest of 
us.' ' Yes,' he replied with emphasis. I said to him, 6 You have 
had a hard conflict, but it is now over and you are going for 
your reward.' < Yes,' he answered, < 1 have fought a good fight 



35 2 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

and have kept the faith and then, after a short pause, added : 
'After all, God is all and Christ is all.' He then turned over 
and appeared very much exhausted by the effort of speaking. 
Through the day he lay quiet, and breathing easily; knew every 
one that came in to see him and spoke to them, though in a 
faint whisper. Being under the necessity of returning to the 
city, about three o'clock in the afternoon the family came into 
the room, and I asked if I should pray with him. He signi- 
fied his assent by the inclination of his head and a soft whisper. 
When we arose from our knees I asked him if he could hear 
and follow me in the prayer. He replied i Yes.' I took his 
hand and said, 6 Brother McPheeters, I must now leave you ; 
good-bye. We will meet in a better country. We will meet 
in the New Jerusalem. 9 He gently inclined his head as he held 
my hand and said, with distinctness and emphasis, 'Amen.' " 

Occasionally his whispers became articulate and reached the 
ear. They were " peace, peace." As he had before said to 
his beloved wife and brother, " Christ commands it to rain, 
and it does rain down peace, peace — wonderfully, powerfully." 
His last whisper, caught in snatches by a young friend, was 
" To live is Christ, to die is gain." And a little after, on this 
9th day of March, 1870, Samuel Brown McPheeters fell asleep 
in Jesus, and another spirit joined the noble army of martyrs 
and confessors in the paradise of God. 

The scene at Mulberry on Friday can never be forgotten. 
There lay the noble form of the faithful pastor chilled in death ; 
but even on the now pallid countenance lingered an expression 
of solemn joy. Around this central figure crowded the favored 
people who had listened often to the gospel of the grace of 
God as it once so sweetly distilled from those lips which are 
mute and sealed forever. That servant of Jesus Christ was 
persecuted by those " who hold the truth in unrighteousness," 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 353 

and the Great Head of the Church put honor on the Mulberry 
congregation, as He did upon the widow of Zarephath, when 
He commanded Elijah to dwell in her house ; and the people to 
whom this faithful witness came gained renown for themselves 
and their posterity, in that they lovingly received the exiled 
prophet and divided unto him, without stint, of " their meal 
and their oil." On Wednesday last, those wounds, inflicted by 
cruel hands, had repined into death. The spirit of the noble 
martyr passed into that country where the wicked cease from 
troubling and the weary are at rest. To-day, all hearts are 
stricken. A whole community assemble, as one household, to 
bear with gentle hands to its silent resting place the remains 
of one whose very dust is more precious than jewels. The 
writer never witnessed such a scene. From the child of tender 
years to the hoary head, every one was a mourner. The spec- 
tacle, too, was inspiring and grand, for heaven and earth 
came together, and the ground on which we trod was holy. 
Kings have theirflatterers, conquerors their menials, but it re- 
mains for the Christian pastor to exhibit a life and a death that 
extracts the tribute of affection and lamentation from every 
good man in society, from the highest down to the very lowest. 

The funeral sermon was preached by Rev. Stuart Robinson, 
from Hebrews xi. 4 : "By it he (Abel) being dead, yet speaketh." 
It would not be fair to attempt even so much as an outline of 
this masterly discourse, which enchained the audience for more 
than an hour. It evidently gave strong consolation to those 
who were bewildered by the early decease of the gifted and in- 
fluential pastor. The great truth was unfolded that the grace 
of God is oftentimes more magnified in the death of His 
saints than even in their lives, of which truth the text gives 
a remarkable example. For in the accepted sacrifice of Abel, 
and in the martyrdom which followed, the voice of salvationi 

23 



354 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



by grace resounded through the ages in more distinct and 
louder tones than would ever have issued from the living lips 
of Abel sacrificing till old as Methuselah. When Poly carp 
and such as he are bound and led to the stake, the blood that 
falls to the ground becomes henceforth and forever the " seed 
of the Church." The deeds of " God's slaughtered ones are 
hallowed by death, and the influence of the martyr survives 
when the lips which testified for Jesus are consumed by the 
fire. The martyr himself can not be dishonored, while every 
blow inflicted becomes a tongue of flame. 

As a fitting close to the funeral services, the following tribute 
was read, which had been unanimously adopted by the Session, 
in view of the sad bereavement which had befallen the com- 
munity, through the mysterious providence of Him whose 
judgments are unsearchable and His ways past finding out : 

By the death of our beloved pastor, Rev. Samuel B. McPheeters, D. 
D., who fell asleep in Jesus, on Wednesday, March 9, 1870, the Session of 
Mulberry Church feel constrained to give expression, officially, to the pro- 
found sorrow of the people of his charge and their affectionate reverence 
for his memory, and to bear testimony to his pre-eminent worth as a pastor 
and teacher of the Church, his holy zeal as a martyr for the truth, his 
spotless purity of character as a man in every relation of life, and the efful- 
gent brightness of his example as an humble follower of the Lord Jesus. 
While a profound reverence for the well known wishes of our beloved pas- 
tor, whose unaffected Christian modesty ever shrank instinctively from the 
praise of men, restrains us in the expression of our admiration of his genius, 
his nobleness, his wisdom and his exalted piety, yet a deep conviction of 
duty to Christ and His truth impels us, as office bearers in the Church and 
representatives of the desires of the people, to bear witness to the wonder- 
ful excellency and power of the grace of Christ as exhibited in the life and 
death of this reverend man of God. For in this time of spiritual declension 
within the Church, and cavil and scoff without, what more effective argument 
can be offered for the reality of the religion of the gospel, notwithstanding 
the inconsistencies and failures of so many who profess the gospel, than 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 355 

such a life, followed by such a death. While as a smitten flock we sit 
broken hearted, and the wail of sorrow is heard in every family of the con- 
gregation, as though each had lost a beloved member, we can but adore the 
great goodness of our Lord, that in the season of our darkest trials He 
should have sent us such a pastor to break to us the word of life. We de- 
sire to testify that though our pastor labored under great physical weakness 
during his whole ministry among us, and though for three years past he 
has been obliged to preach lying upon his couch instead of standing in the 
pulpit, yet our people have unanimously regarded themselves as among the 
most highly favored of Churches in respect of pastoral ministrations, and 
every child of God among us remembers, with hearts full of liveliest grati- 
tude, how, under his instructions, they have grown in grace. We desire 
to give utterance to the universal testimony of the people, professors and 
non-professors alike, to the singular and varied excellencies of character 
which marked his intercourse with all ages, all classes and conditions. Of 
him the most worldly and godless have been constrained to admit "that 
we find no fault in this man." 

In him those perplexed with the troubles of life never failed to find the 
wisest of human counselors. By him the soul in darkness was, with wonderful 
skill, led to Christ ; the aged saint was comforted through his rich expe- 
rience in the Christian life ; while his genial, companionable spirit attracted 
even the thoughtless to heed his solemn counsels and warnings. Our chil- 
dren, won by his gentleness and unfailing cheerfulness, were sweetly led to 
Him who took the children in His arms and blessed them. 

And that this eminence in Christian virtue was the work of Divine 
grace, none can doubt who heard, as we have heard, his humble confession 
of sinfulness by nature and by practice, and his adoring views of the grace 
that could save such a sinner as he. The heroic faith that enabled his soul 
to triumph over bodily suffering so intense and so long protracted, and the 
calm and patient waiting for death, saying, ' ' for me to live is Christ, to die 
is gain," added to the argument of his matchless life, completes the demonstra- 
tion that a Gospel which has produced such a character is not of man, but 
of God. 

It is impossible to depict the scene or to describe the emo- 
tions of that stricken congregation when this tribute of respect 
adopted by the Session was read to the Church. The moans 
and tears that responded to every utterance, from all parts of 



356 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

the house, testified that these were no formal resolutions of 
respect, but the sincere convictions of hearts full and overflow- 
ing. Every one felt as though a member of his own family 
had been taken away. 

When the services at Mulberry were concluded the body 
was borne to Shelby ville, six miles distant, and deposited tem- 
porarily in the public vault of Grove Hill Cemetery, to await 
its removal to the city of St. Louis, where it might sleep till 
the morning of the resurrection, near the very spot in which 
the living witness had testified so nobly to the truth. 

On Monday, April 25, the writer, in charge of the precious 
remains , set out from Shelby ville for the city of St. Louis. By 
previous arrangement it was determined that, on the arrival, the 
last sad rites should be performed quietly and without ostenta- 
tion. Accordingly, on Tuesday morning the hearse moved 
slowly forward to Bellefontaine Cemetery, followed by a few 
friends whose " eyes were dim by reason of sorrow." Through 
the busy crowd, heedless, rushing on, and along the winding 
streets once so familiar — in the very place where truth, in other 
days, was uttered bravely — the corse of this man went mutely 
to its home. Drs. Farris, Lacy, Anderson, Brank, with Rev. 
W. H. Parks and the writer, companions of his earthly toil, 
stood at the grave. The Book was opened, and there, in that 
city of the dead, amid its myriad sleepers, the ambassador of 
the living God read from St. Paul's letter to the Corinthians the 
sublime lesson of the resurrection. Together we sang a song 
of Zion, and in words of earnest prayer committed all to Him 
who " after a little while will come, and will not tarry." 

It was a glorious April day, and the sun shone down in mild 
but bright effulgence. The earth in months past was sere and 
verdureless, and gave signs of death. But the winter is now 
over and gone ; the tender grass sheweth itself ; the fields look 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



357 



fair and green ; the modest wild-flower blooms ; the forest trees 
make haste to bud, while through their branches sing the little 
birds ; and over all, in its deep cerulean beauty, hangs the 
cloudless sky — these " analogies of nature " pointing with em- 
phatic finger to a resurrection morn, when they who slumber in 
their graves shall come forth in a moment, in the twinkling of 
an eye, at the last trump, and the corruptible must put on 
incorruption, and this mortal, immortality. On this peerless 
day we buried the body of Samuel Brown McPheeters upon 
the bank of the great Mississippi, fully assured that the testi- 
mony of this steadfast witness for the Master shall survive and 
be borne onward by the faithful as long as the " Father of 
Waters " rolls down to the sea ; and confident, too, that from 
the tomb, when Jesus comes, few brighter forms shall ascend 
to meet him in the air than the worn and wasted one that has 
just gone down in hope to await, in earth's lowly, silent bed, 
that "blessed appearing of its Lord." 



353 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

TESTIMONIAL LETTERS OF CONDOLENCE. 

As the tidings of Dr. McPheeters , death spread over the 
country, testimonials, both public and private, flowed in freely 
on the family. Dr. S. J. P. Anderson writes : 

"To speak well of the dead, and to preserve a pleasant 
recollection of all that is commendable in their lives, is one of 
the most powerful, as it is also one of the most amiable, of 
impulses. This tendency, however, has caused eulogistic obitu- 
aries to be greatly suspected and generally considered merely 
formal. But there are cases where the terms of affectionate 
admiration, even when enthusiastic, are the spontaneous and 
irrepressible utterance of the bereaved and wounded heart. 
And it looks like a wrong to the dead and a robbery of the 
living to repress the utterance of the words of loving praise. 
And even they are very inadequate memorials of excellences 
that are all the grander and more dear because they are seen 
now by eyes bedimmed with tears. I know that it will be so in 
what I have to say of that great man in Israel, who has so 
recently entered into rest. While strangers may regard this sketch 
as altogether too highly wrought, those who knew him well and 
intimately will lay it aside as an imperfect and inadequate por- 
traiture of one of the most truly noble men that God has given 
the Church of the present generation. I have known him 
intimately for a quarter of a century, and through the joy and 
sorrow, prosperity and adversity, the honor and reproach of 
that long time he has constantly greatened in my view as a 
Christian, preacher and theologian, and has gained a firmer 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 359 

hold of the tenderest and strongest fibers of my heart as a 
friend and brother. And I say now that he was one of the 
most faultless men in all the relations of life that I have ever 
known. As a companion he had few equals and no superiors. 
Endowed with a most exquisite wit, whose keen and polished 
edge was never jagged by acrimony or envy, he had also those 
sympathies and generous emotions that hindered any use of 
his remarkable powers that would inflict pain. He loved his 
friends too much to use them for the exhibition of his wit in 
any way that could rankle in the memory. These qualities 
made him one of the most delightful of companions, and often 
in intervals of study and in long days of travel have I enjoyed 
the unflagging interest that he could give to social intercourse. 
But, better than this, he was an humble, sincere and ardent 
Christian. Without one particle of cant, he so lived and talked 
that every one was profoundly impressed with his love of God 
and zeal for the salvation of the souls of men. In the pulpit 
and in private he impressed men with the conviction that the 
loadstone of his mind and heart was the love of Christ, and 
that his whole deportment was prompted and governed by the 
principles of the Gospel. There was a daily beauty in his life 
that sustained and enforced his teachings from the pulpit. 

"With these qualifications he could not be otherwise than an 
impressive and powerful preacher. Those who heard him 
attentively and intelligently saw in his discourses strong thought 
clearly expressed, enforced by a terrible earnestness that left no 
room for the thought that this was a mere perfunctory perform- 
ance. The flashes of his eloquence were not like summer light- 
ning — a sort of celestial pyrotechnics, to amuse and delight — but 
the overflow of volcanic fire that burned in the very depths of 
his soul. He preached in full view of the great white throne, 
before which he and his hearers were soon to stand. 



3 6 ° 



MEMOIR OF S> B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



" He was also an able theologian. It is no disparagement 
to his brethren of the Synod of Missouri to say that he was 
the peer of the best of them — clear, acute in his discriminations, 
full and accurate in his judgments, and broad and comprehen- 
sive in his statements. These things being so, it would be 
justly concluded that he was tenderly loved as well as much 
admired by his congregation. Indeed, I do not know that I 
ever knew a pastor to whom his people clung more tenaciously. 
They preferred him to any one else, and adhered to him in the 
dark days of the strife, which cast a gloom over the midday of 
his usefulness, when their loving allegiance cost them some- 
thing. He had a clear perception of the fact that Christ's 
kingdom is not of this world, and bravely maintaining his 
principles when greatly tempted to swerve from them, or, at 
least, temporize and conceal, he gave them a clear, clarion-like 
utterance that no one was so stupid as to misunderstand, and 
bore the silencing of his voice in the pulpit and banishment 
from his field of labor rather than retract or qualify. And yet 
he endured persecution without murmuring and without resent- 
ment. Even the treachery of false brethren did not arouse him 
to harsh or railing accusations. He had enough of the Master's 
spirit to pray, ( Father, forgive them, they know not what they 
do.' He passed through the furnace kindled by human hands 
without the smell of fire on his garments. And though these 
cruel persecutions stopped his mouth and broke his health, so 
as to hasten the day of mourning that is on us now, he was 
ever cheerful and happy. The sunshine of an approving con- 
science and the presence of that Savior for whom he suffered 
was his unfailing support. But his faith sustained a fiercer trial. 
It was hard to bear the stroke inflicted by the hand of former 
friendship, but harder still to submit when his Father on high 
pointed him to another furnace of heat and bid him enter it. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETRS, D. D. 



361 



Painful, prostrating and protracted sickness did not dim his 
cheerful faith. Those who approached his chamber of pain, 
trembling with sympathy, went away thanking God for such 
grace to his servant and ashamed of their own petty grief. 
His death was as illustrious as his life. We thank God for 
both. 

"But this brief record would be unpardonably incomplete 
without mention of the circumstances of his last sickness, which 
so arTectingly exhibit his love of ministerial work and his zeal 
for souls. When confined to his room and prostrate on his 
couch he invited the young people of his charge to gather 
around him in a Bible class, and thus on his back he taught 
them out of the Scriptures and tenderly exhorted them to 
remember their Creator in the days of their youth — counsels 
which, enforced as they were by the affecting circumstances 
that surrounded him, were greatly blessed in drawing them to 
Christ. And when the great interest of these services drew so 
many as to overcrowd his chamber and the avenues to it, he 
requested to be carried to his church, and there from his couch 
preached Christ to the people of his charge. And thus for three 
years he spoke from the borders of the tomb, c as a dying man 
to dying men, 7 the things which make for our peace. Such 
devotion to his work has been seldom paralleled. It may well 
be written in the same chapter that speaks of Bunyan's preach- 
ing from his prison. 

"We take leave of this dear brother with an almost envious 
admiration of the honor put on him and of the rest that he has 
attained, and say, ' Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. 7 " 

Dr. J. R. Wilson observes : " In all the elements of a true 
manhood brother McPheeters has had few equals. His intel- 
lect was of the finest order, or rather, was large enough to have 
room in its love for his bitterest and most relentless enemies ; 



362 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

and I never knew any man with a conscience more clear in its 
perceptions, or who listened with more childlike obedience to 
the voice of that divine mentor. 

" It was a dark day for the Presbyterian Church when she 
permitted the strong hand of the persecutor to be laid upon 
this faithful man of God. And it was a still darker day when 
she herself, in suicidal madness, ' cast him out of the Church* 
and branded him as a 1 rebel/ a ' slanderer/ and ' a schismatic. 1 
That record is upon earth, and his record is on high. The 
day is not distant when these two records shall be laid side 
by side, before the Judge of quick and dead, who is no re- 
specter of persons or of majorities. Perhaps before that day 
those who did that deed of wanton and cruel wrong may 
repent of their deed and be forgiven. That it may be so none 
will pray more earnestly than he who loved with a brother's 
love the victim of that wrong. But no - ordinary repentance 
can suffice for such a deed. It is, I think, the remark of Prin- 
cipal Cunningham, ' that a hundred years of repentance would 
scarce suffice to wipe out from the page of Scottish Church 
history the guilt and shame of the casting out of the Erskines 
from that Church/ Will twice a hundred years of repentance 
efface from the records of the Presbyterian Church the foul 
blot with which they are stained by the exclusion from her 
pale of that truest and noblest of her sons— Samuel. B. Mc- 
Pheeters ?" 

Hon. F. P. Blair remarks : " My acquaintance with our 
lamented friend was formed when we were school boys at 
Chapel Hill College, in North Carolina, where we were class- 
mates and room-mates. He had a charm of manner and a 
sweetness of expression which won the hearts of all who ap- 
proached him; but to the outward graces were added the 
sterling qualities of head and heart which formed the solid 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 363 

foundations, distinguished for vigorous intellect purity and de- 
votion to principle, and which commanded the respect and 
admiration of all who were associated with him through life. 

" I knew him in after life, when, as a minister of the gospel, 
he sought to comfort and strengthen his fellow men with his 
own pure faith. The bright and cheerful spirit of his youth 
had given place to a more matured and thoughtful, but not less 
pleasing and delightful temper. And even in those days of 
conflict, when individuals, who were bound together by ties of 
affection and kindred, were torn asunder by the convulsion 
which shook a nation, there was something in his gentle nature 
that saved him from that bitterness by which so many of us 
were stirred. 

" When his labors and disease, which had so long lurked in 
his system, had almost completed their work, and he approached 
the confines of life, it seemed to me, as I last saw his broken 
and prostrate form, that his fortitude and cheerful resignation 
had given him the power to overcome not only the pains which 
afflict the body, but to dispel the dark shadows of the impene- 
trable future, whose gloom gives a sharper pang than the 
tortures of the body. 

" It has never been my fortune to know a better or purer man, 
or one more upright and conscientious in the discharge of the 
duties of the most difficult and highest calling among men, 
and I feel it presumptuous in me, even at the request of friends, 
to attempt the delineation of a character which excites my 
highest admiration, but which I have shown so little capacity 
to imitate." 

Rev. A. J. Witherspoon says : " I was chaplain of the 21st 
Alabama volunteer regiment, and was taken prisoner in the 
battle of Shiloh, Tennessee, April 7, 1862. I was confined in 
the McDowell College Prison, St Louis, Mo. I was sick, 



3 6 4 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



near unto death, and reduced to a shadow; had not even a 
change of raiment, and had worn the same clothes for three 
weeks ; had no current money, and was too feeble to do any- 
thing for myself. In that forlorn condition a gentleman of 
the gentlest and kindest manners came to me in prison. He 
said his name was McPheeters, Presbyterian minister, of St. 
Louis. He inquired if it were possible that I was a minister 
of the gospel in that situation. He said, ' My brother, you 
need aid.' And he gave it. The man seemed so overcome 
that he offered me his entire purse. I declined this, but re- 
ceived a small sum that would pay for my washing. He in- 
sisted that I should take more. I declined. He wept and I 
wept. He said that he was allowed but a few moments to stay ; 
that it was with great difficulty that he got admittance at all. 
Dr. McPheeters left, and I never saw him afterward, but I 
never lacked again for clothing, nourishment, medicine or 
money during the four months of imprisonment that remained. 
When I saw the announcement of his death I mourned over 
the loss of such a man at such a time when good and honest 
men are so much needed." 

Mr. L. Y. Button, a man of the world, of excellent sense, 
but remarkable for the asperity of his judgment in regard to 
mankind in general, said to the writer : " I can see faults in 
Mr. A. and in Dr. B. I thought I could detect faults in any 
body, but I lived here five years in sight of Dr. McPheeters 
and I watched him closely. I heard him talk ; he always talked 
right. I saw what he did ; he always did right. Sir, that man 
stumped me, for I could find no fault at all in him." 

Dr Plumer says : " I knew S. B. McPheeters when a little 
boy. I have loved him for more than forty years. My esti- 
mate of his character has always been high. I have never 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



3 6 5 



known a more manly, sincere, upright or lovely person. I 
only regret that I have been so little with him." 

Letters of sympathy and consolation were also received. 
Dr. S. R. Wilson, on March ioth, wrote to Mrs. McPheeters, 
saying : " You asked me to remember you and write you a 
word for comfort and strength. I promised to do so. But 
now, what shall I say ? The stroke so long anticipated has 
come at last. Yet it is sore and heavy. Looking for it to fall 
does not much lighten the blow. It has staggered you — how 
the head reels and the heart faints ! How obscure the prom- 
ises once so plain, and seemingly easy to understand and apply 
— how obscure they have all at once become. Indeed, you, 
perhaps, can hardly see them through the mist sorrow has shed 
over your eyes. This is not strange. Now no chastening for 
the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous. To be a true 
and loving child of a reconciled God is not to be a stoic. It 
is to have a tender heart like that of Jesus, a heart whose over- 
flowings must find a way or it would break. Jesus wept. So 
may we. ' Behold how He loved him." You loved — oh ! 
how much you alone can understand — you loved your noble, 
generous, good husband. With your wifely joy a stranger 
could not intermeddle ; how then can a stranger know the bit- 
terness of your heart from which that joy is torn ! But let the 
sweetness of its remembrance take away the pungency of its 
loss. Did he not teach you, by his own example, how to re- 
joice in tribulation ; how to praise God in the fire as well as 
in the green pastures ; how to walk by faith and not by sight ? 
To have been the wife of such a man of God — his companion, 
his help — so long; to have enjoyed for so many years the com- 
munion of such a spirit — is not this an honor, a privilege, to 
call for gratitude ? And when you must needs part for a little 
while, to see him going away so smilingly. Not because he 



366 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



loved you less — oh ! no, but because he loved his blessed 
Master more ; because orders had come from the King and he 
was wanted at court. You will not repine, I know. You can 
not but miss him, so much ! And tears must flow. Many 
days and nights you will sit alone and weep. But the sun will 
shine through the rifted clouds again, more bright than ever, 
and the dew drops will become diamonds in his beams, and 
the rainbow will span the heavens, and faith's eye will look up 
into the blue azure in the far off firmament, and will see the 
way worn servant of God resting from his labors upon the 
bosom of his Redeemer. And then you will see how good for 
him, and for you as well, has been this parting for awhile. I 
am sure that if not in this brief life, yet on the other side of 
the river, you will praise Him for this who doeth all things in 
love to His own. But try and begin His praise even now. 
Say, 1 Blessed be the name of the Lord.' He comes to you 
in the darkness and you may hear His kind voice saying, ' It 
is I, be not afraid/ 

"'Had He asked us, well we know 
We should cry, 4 'Oh! spare the blow! 
Yes, with streaming tears should pray, 
Lord, we love him, let him stay." 

" 'But the Lord doth naught amiss, 
And since He hath ordered this, 
We have naught to do but still 
Rest in silence on His will/ 

"And that is a firm resting place — a place of safety and 
repose. 

" But I shall weary you with words — not comfort your aching 
heart. Accept the desire to minister to your great grief, and 
excuse the poor solace I have been able to give. Nothing but 
necessity keeps me from coming up to follow the precious dust 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 367 



of my much loved friend and brother in Jesus to the grave. 
The labors of a communion season forbid. But I will think of 
you and your dear children to-morrow and weep with you in 
spirit, though not permitted to be present in body. May Jesus 
strengthen you in that hour. If I can do any thing for you or 
your family, do me the favor to command my services. Tell 
the boys to emulate the high, noble, Christian example of their 
father. 

" Commending you all to the Shepherd of Israel and that 
Father who careth for you, I remain most sincerely your friend 
in Jesus." 

Rev. D. W. Shanks, of Falling Spring, Virginia, writes: 
" It is unnecessary, my dear, afflicted sister, to say to you that 
I deeply sympathize with you in a loss which this world can 
never repair. However much of comfort you may have in the 
life and death of your dear husband, you have sustained, with- 
out question, a great ( I had almost said an irreparable) loss ; 
but, blessed be God, it is not irreparable, for earth hath no 
sorrow which heaven can not heal. His grave may — yea, 
doubtless will— cast a shadow over the rest of your days; but 
that shadow shall flee away before the light of heaven, and 
your loss will be eternally repaired in the blessed reunion of 
that place where there is no more going out or partings. You 
sorrow not, my dear sister, as those who have no hope. Cer- 
tainly, if we can ever say of a departed friend that he is this 
day in glory, the life of your dear husband warrants us to speak 
thus of him. There are few such Christians. Such gentleness, 
kindness, charity, love, modesty and humility have rarely graced 
the character of any one. I believe I have never known so 
many lovely and attractive qualities united in one character as 
that of your husband. He was universally esteemed, universally 
loved. Other persons interest us, but he was not simply agree- 



368 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



able, but won at once the hearts of all who knew him. I can 
not see how such a man could have an enemy. He was so 
gentle, sincere, guileless and unpretentious that even the most 
envious could but rejoice in his success. If he was the foun- 
tain of joy in the social circle — as he always was — no one felt 
overshadowed, but all went away charmed with his simplicity 
and company. As a preacher he had a single eye. I suppose 
no one ever suspected any other motive in his preaching than 
the glory of his Master. He ceased not to teach and to preach 
Christ crucified. When he ascended the pulpit, the great con- 
straining power in him was the love of Christ • his personality 
was lost in his official character as ambassador for Christ. 

" I might say much more about him, but if he were living he 
probably would not like what I have already said. But as I 
loved him I could not help saying, in part, why I and all loved 
him. My dear sister, you have lost a treasure and the Church 
of Christ a jewel; but, blessed be God, your treasure is now 
laid up in heaven and the Church's jewel is now a sparkling 
gem in the diadem of her King. It was His will that he should 
leave us and be with Him that he might behold His glory. 
Jesus made him lovely while on earth ; what He gave He has 
taken away, that he may shine as the brightness of the firma- 
ment and the stars forever and ever. And we should remem- 
ber that in such affections there is a compensation. What we 
lose others gain, as the setting sun, while it darkens one part 
of our globe goes to gladden another. If he has left us, he is 
now an accession to heaven; if he has ceased to preach Christ 
here, he is still crying, 1 Unto Him that loved me and washed 
me from my sins in His own blood, unto Him be honor and 
dominion and praise.' Happy life, happy death, happy eternity." 

From Mrs. D. Ridgeley, formerly a member of the Pine 
Street flock, there came the following gentle words : 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



3^9 



" I have hesitated, my dear friend, about intruding upon 
your sorrows, but can no longer resist the desire to offer to you 
my most heartfelt sympathies. I sincerely mourn my beloved 
pastor, who filled in an eminent degree that relation to me, 
I can never forget our last interview when he came as com- 
forter, after God had taken my little daughter to Himself. 
How much I thought of him and missed his sympathy in my 
recent trial I can not tell, when my first born darling left me ! 
I feel that my religious relations with the Pine Street Church, 
under your dear husband's care, was the most pleasant and 
profitable I have ever enjoyed. 

" That God will be with you and yours I can not doubt ; that 
He will sustain and comfort you, is my earnest prayer.'' 

Rev. Dr. R. P. Farris says : " I can not write, but I can 
weep and rejoice with you. You do not need to be told that 
I loved your husband, yes, with the sincerest, fondest, most 
unreserved affection. I knew that he was suffering here, I 
knew that a mansion was ready for him in the ' Father's 
House,' but still I have been so selfish as to wish to keep him 
with us. And now that he has gone home, it is as when my 
own precious ones have been called away from my fireside. 
Please accept my sympathy and that of my household for 
yourself and the children. We know that the confidence with 
which your husband committed you and them to the covenant 
keeping Saviour shall be rewarded with great blessing to you 
all." 

Rev. James H. Brookes, D. D., offered his tribute of affection 
and condolence : 

" It will relieve my own heart to write, for thoughts of your 
dear, noble husband are continually engaging my mind. Some- 
times in the solitude of my study, and sometimes when walk- 
ing in the streets, and sometimes while I lie awake at night, 
24 



37o 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



and sometimes in the midst and pressure of work, he engages 
my mind, and I almost fancy that he is near me. Ever since 
I heard of his death — no, not death, but of his falling asleep 
in Jesus — the world has seemed much poorer and meaner than 
it was, and heaven much nearer and sweeter. O, what a loss 
his removal has been to the redeemed on earth and what a 
gain it has been to the company beyond ! I shall not see his 
like again this side of the grave, and his departure makes me 
turn with a quick bound of the heart to cry ' Even so, come 
Lord Jesus.' 

" In the last letter I received from him he spoke of the coming 
of Christ as his hope and his joy, and that same hope and joy 
can animate your faith and soothe your grief in this hour of 
your affliction, my sister. Your husband is in heaven, and you, 
too, are there as God views you, seated with our dear Lord in 
the heavenly places, and therefore you are not far separated 
from each other. Mark! the Bible, blessed book, says, ' God, 
who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved 
us, even when we we were dead in sins, hath quickened us 
together with Christ (by grace ye are saved) and hath raised 
us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in 
Christ Jesus. 7 All this God has done — it is our present stand- 
ing, our peace and portion in Christ even in this world ; and if 
so, how near you and your husband still are to one another. 
He is in heaven personally, and you are there in Christ. He 
is a member of the body of Christ, who is the living Head, 
and so are you, with just this thin decaying film of flesh be- 
tween you and him. He is past the place of condemnation 
and judgment and death, and so are you, on the heavenward 
side of the Cross, waiting to depart and be with Christ, which 
is far better, or rather, waiting for Christ who will come again 
and receive you to Himself, that where He is you may be also. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



371 



At His coming, which may take place before I finish this letter, 
you and your husband will be together again. Think of that! 
The Bible says, when our Lord shall descend from heaven with 
a shout — and that is before any millennium can possibly occur — 
' the dead in Christ shall rise first, then we which are alive and 
remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to 
meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall ever be with the 
Lord ; wherefore comfort one another with these words.' Yes, 
my dear sister, let me comfort you with these words, for they 
are precious words and true words, every one of them. If 
Jesus were here this is the way he would comfort you. He 
would not chide your tears, He would not rebuke your grief, 
but He would tell you, while weeping in sympathy with your 
sorrow, of all that your beloved one now enjoys and of all that 
you will enjoy soon in His blessed presence." 

"'Oh! he's reached the sunny shore, 

Over there ! 

He will never suffer more, 
All his pain and grief are o'er 

Over there ! 
Oh ! the streets are shining gold, 

Over there! 

And the glory is untold; 

'Tis our shepherd's peaceful fold, 

Over there ! 
Oh ! he feels no chilling blast 

Over there ! 

For his winter time is past 
And the summers always last, 

Over there ! 
Oh ! he's done the weary fight, 

Over there! 
Jesus saved him by His might, 
And he walks with Him in white, 

Over there ! 



37 2 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

Oh ! he needs no lamp at night 

Over there ! 
For the day is always bright 
And the Saviour is his light, 

Over there ! 
Oh ! he never sheds a tear, 

Over there ! 
For the Lord Himself is near, 
And to Him he's ever dear, 

Over there ! ' 

"May the Lord increase your faith and give you songs in 
the night, and cause you to follow the dear pilgrim 6 over there/ 
leading your children by the hand, so that you may stand to- 
gether again, clothed in white, when the sound of the trump 
shall awake the slumberers in the grave." 



\ 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



373 



CHAPTER XX. 

THE AUTHOR'S ESTIMATE. 

Singular enough, the world, sinful as it is, has ever enter- 
tained a kind of admiration for true excellence. It admires 
while it accuses, persecutes and seeks to destroy. No people, 
however rude or uncultured have been destitute of a hero 
emblazoned on their national escutcheon. This sentiment finds 
its source in a yearning that is as instinctive as it is universal. 
For mankind in all countries admit, tacitly at least, that nature 
and society have lost their original mould. Man is now not 
what he once was. The vessel, somehow or other, has been 
" marred in the hands of the potter," while the creature, turn 
whither he may, groans under burdens of iniquity, suffering 
and death, from which the wisdom of this world offers no ade- 
quate escape. Every invention of the race leaves a gloomy 
vacuum in the soul, and the same futile effort is repeated from 
generation to generation, to draw water from wells which are 
empty and from cisterns that are dry. The stern realities of 
ordinary experience, sooner or later, become irksome and sad. 
The identical scenes from month to month and year to year 
ever recurring, varied by disappointment and sorrow, only 
deepen perplexity and augment dissatisfaction. The testimony 
of Solomon finds an echo in every unregenerated heart — 
"Vanity of vanities, all is vanity." 

Wearied, therefore, with the familiar and deceptious routine 
of earth, it is natural enough that the mind should look out 
elsewhere for prospects more enticing. What it can not accom- 



374 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



plish in the real it eagerly determines to encompass in the ideal. 
It resolves to close the eye on scenes esteemed gross and un- 
exciting, and with melancholy temerity ventures to create a 
world of its own. It is to this universal craving that fiction, 
whether in prose or in verse, so sedulously panders. For the 
occupation of the novelist would depart did there not exist in 
the very constitution of man's nature an insatiable longing after 
wonderful things. Hence, of " making many books there is no 
end." The gorgeous creations of genius are fascinating, because 
the reader for a moment banishes the common place. Fiction 
orders the situation, leaves out the monotonous, creates difficul- 
ties, introduces mystery, and in the sequel the whole plot 
terminates in a way adapted most exactly to the morbid taste 
of the reader. Nevertheless, these characters of romance are 
without a parallel among the sons and daughters of men as 
they move to and fro in the daily avocations of life. Nor 
could any hero of fiction, even if his existence were substanti- 
ated, find a suitable arena in this fallen world on which to exist 
and successfully labor. Such a "creation" is only possible 
upon the pages of fancy. The eye never saw it clothed upon 
with mortality, and never will. Men may chase the phantom, 
but it leads at last into a wilderness of despair. 

But, after all, these aspirations are prophetic and indicate the 
possibility of a higher state of existence " than the life that now 
is " for the toiling and wearied spirit. And, blessed be God, 
that inborn desire has been gloriously answered, for the match- 
less character which imagination strives in vain to portray is 
gloriously unfolded " in God manifest in the flesh." The 
instinct is normal and legitimate, but while the model of the 
New Testament enforces admiration in the vilest of men, yet 
the pattern exhibited there is so immaculately pure that the 
sight, to an eye which is evil, produces quaking and fear, for 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



37S 



to transgressors of any degree it is a standing rebuke. Here 
is a person whose thirty-three years of veritable work shall 
certainly outlive all the portraitures of romance. 

Nor did the Great Exemplar quit the world without a 
voucher when He Himself ascended up far above all heavens 
that He might fill all things. He committed His doctrine and 
and imparted His spirit to a company of witnesses who, with 
their successors to the end of time, were to be " living epistles 
known and read of all men." Earthen vessels were selected, 
and these so set apart and sanctified that the believer is bound 
ever to say, " For me to live is Christ." And as the Master 
Himself appealed to His own works, and declared that these 
bore witness of Him, so He gave it in charge to His disciples 
that the same rule of judgment must be applied to every pro- 
fessed follower. " Ye are my friends if ye do whatsoever I 
command you." Christ, therefore, is to repeat, in a manner, 
His own living testimony in the life and example of every faith- 
ful disciple. 

At the present moment, when the pages of fiction overrun 
the land, and when characters the most distorted, not to say 
pernicious, are exhibited for imitation, is it not well to recall, if 
possible, the mind even of a few from the vain and delusive 
representations of fancy and to fix it upon a model whose vir- 
tues were real and whose graces are inimitable ? If the great 
heart of humanity pines for a type of excellence, such as the 
world can not furnish in its corrupted generations, why should 
it not be pointed first to that " Divine pattern showed to us in 
the Mount," and after and through Him to the cloud of wit- 
nesses who confirm from age to age, by godliness and holy 
conversation, the great salvation which " at the first begun to 
be spoken by the Lord?" It matters not how fallen and de- 
graded is every child of Adam by nature ; this melancholy and 



37 6 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

undeniable fact only illustrates more clearly and effectually the 
gracious and superhuman power of Jesus, when He sends forth 
from these empty cisterns the pure and sweet waters of life. 

How far, therefore, Christ reveals Himself to the Church and 
the world in the life of this man or that; to what extent grace 
triumphs over the law that is in our members; by what au- 
thority and with what boldness a helpless mortal may trust a 
covenant-making God — it is in this light alone that Christian 
biography can become intelligent or edifying. 

In the task, therefore, which lay before him the writer felt 
encouraged, because the character which he sought to portray 
was not a worthy of the olden time, much of whose authentic 
inner and outer life the dust of ages obscured and made doubt- 
ful; but a witness for the truth, whose course is just finished 
and whose race for the goal " was seen of above five hundred 
brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain unto this 
present." 

And as all who reverence genuine worth are interested in a 
true hero down to his very bodily presence, an effort in the in- 
stance before us shall be made to gratify measurably this not 
unnatural curiosity. 

In person Dr. McPheeters was fully up to the medium hight, 
but very spare, and at no period of his life remarkable for 
physical vigor. With a forehead broad and well developed ; 
an eye, in respose soft and dreamy, but under excitement flash- 
ing and brilliant, reflecting from its clear blue depths perfect 
sincerity — rapid and varied in expression, at one time indicating 
righteous indignation, at another laughing with humor, while 
again the fast falling tear pointed to inward tenderness and 
emotion; with a mouth prevalent in meaning and correspondent 
to the eye : these two organs mirroring the thoughts of the 
soul when the mind was either enlivened by joy or dispirited 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



377 



by sorrow, whether battling with error or rejoicing in the truth, 
conversing on high themes or unbending with play. The coun- 
tenance of McPheeters was notable and possessed a magnetism 
not easily described, but of which every one felt conscious who 
ever beheld him in the pulpit or sat by his side in the charmed 
circle of home. What friend ever forgot the warmth of his 
greeting : " Why, sir, I am glad to see you ?" And then, throwing 
out his arm with a quick, hearty motion, and grasping the hand, 
he would repeat, with emphasis, " I am very glad to see you."* 

In the life and character of Dr. McPheeters there was pre- 
sented as perfect a specimen of well ordered natural endow- 
ments, sanctified and ennobled by grace, as we can ever expect 
to behold in this sin-stricken world. Other men of his gene- 
ration surpassed him in genius, in learning, in eloquence, but 
in this man every faculty so harmonized that when a work had 
to be done there were never any delinquent or refractory forces. 
He was endowed with a wisdom that delivered him, consistently, 
from hasty, foolish and ill-tempered things. With a judgment 
pre-eminently sound, it was safe at all times to trust him as a 
counselor. Indeed, his intellect was so constituted that had 
he chosen the legal profession the highest judicial positions 
would have awaited him, and he could have won lasting re- 
nown for the clearness and rectitude of his decisions. His 
impartiality was wonderful. No amount of personal injury 
could blind his mind to the truth. But in all instances, and 
on the very rack of exile and abuse, he weighed with delibe- 
rate scrutiny the arguments of opponents. He guarded with 
vigilance the avenues to prejudice, and changing situations 
with an adversary, until a stranger almost suspected him of 
complicity, he turned over and over in his own mind every 

*The steel-plate was presented by Pine Street and Mulberry congregations. 



37* 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



plausible objection. He was never so exacting as when dealing 
with himself. 

The piety of Dr. McPheeters was cast in the loftiest mould, 
and yet there never appeared in its composition a shadow of 
fanaticism. The atmosphere in which this man of God existed 
was not only inspiriting, but pre-eminently healthgiving, and in 
the lineaments of his spiritual frame there could be found not 
a trace of the morbid. He was " cordial, cheerful, energetic, 
self-forgetful, devout, fearful toward God, fearless toward man, 
firm for the truth and the right, yet charitable and deferential 
toward others, doing and suffering all for Jesus' sake — the 
noblest and sweetest of all motives." His soul, to its inner- 
most depths, delighted in friendships, in fireside discussions, 
and his discourse was interspersed with confiscations of wit and 
the outpourings of good nature. No man of our day surpassed 
him in capacity for rich, refined and racy humour. In the 
bosom of friends he abounded in anecdote, but no temptation, 
persuasion or flattery could induce him to so far violate deco- 
rum as to adorn a single story with an expression that even 
savored of coarseness or vulgar profanity. His humor, too, 
was invariably so chaste and good natured that the tenderest 
sensibilities were never interrupted, while he could always turn 
from it in a moment without violence to the solemnest subjects. 

The manner of Dr. McPheeters was so dignified and pure 
that vulgar familiarity never dared to approach, whilst in his 
intercourse with the poorest and most ignorant the eye of de- 
traction itself could not detect a shadow of assumption. Airs 
and affectation were irreconcilably opposed to the inherent sim- 
plicity of his unequivocal nature. No man of any generation 
ever stood more squarely on his merits. He even chafed at a 
compliment which was felt to be undeserved. And if it may 
be said of a single individual that lives, that he abhors pretense 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



379 



and detests hypocrisy, the same specification, without abridg- 
ment, can be predicated of McPheeters. In all that concerned 
another, his soul, like some transparent lake, revealed its secrets 
down to the very bottom. Not only did he hold to the truth 
in the ordinary sense, but his refined and independent spirit 
loathed indirection. To know him intimately, day after day, 
in business cares and home, only made the verdict more certain : 
" Here is an Israelite indeed in whom there is no guile." There 
was something so self-forgetful in all that he did that the heart 
of the most callous could not fail to be impressed. Others 
might delight in revenge, and exact to the uttermost farthing 
payment from a debtor, but it was the joy of McPheeters " to 
seek peace and pursue it." Malignity could not wound him 
so deeply that he did not forgive, without reservation, the mo- 
ment it was ascertained that his enemy had repented. Under 
no pressure from without of vexation and wrong did he ever 
yield to bitterness or indulge in recrimination. She who shared 
without stint his confidence and love declared to the writer 
that throughout the four years of outrage and persecution, 
never, even in the sanctity of home, did her noble hearted 
husband utter a word that (had it been repeated without) could 
have compromised him with the world. But under every trial 
of body and perplexity of mind his patience and calm were 
truly majestic. Nor did this proceed from indifference or 
timidity, for the subject of this memoir possessed the bold- 
ness of a martyr, while his sympathy and tenderness were only 
equaled by his courage. His bright, beaming eye never quailed 
before a mortal, and, on the other hand, the sight of wretched- 
ness and suffering moved him quickly to tears. 

Dr. McPheeters possessed a temperament so equably poised 
that there were never any ebullitions of ecstacy or manifes- 
tations of gloom. But his friends found him hopeful and 



3 8o 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



calm, even in seasons when most men would have murmured 
or despaired. He rarely alluded to his great physical sufferings, 
unless questioned by a friend, and even then the response was 
always brief and usually very cheerful. Like all truly great 
souls, he soon wearied with conversation about self, and his 
genial and disinterested spirit eagerly turned to subjects, more 
engaging. This suffering man was a magnificent study for 
complainers of every description ; and if all invalids exhibited 
the same attractions, the world could well afford to value its 
sick among the excellent gifts of God. 

In every condition and relation of life our departed friend 
acknowledged adoringly the sovereignty of God. Whilst others 
brooded over misfortune, mischief and oppression, this man 
looked to the law in his own members and bravely fought 
against that. Every thing about him betokened a sojourner, 
and the pilgrim, staff in hand, waited only for the morning. 

As a preacher, Dr. McPheeters, in common acceptation, 
would not be called eloquent And yet the people always 
heard him gladly. His apt illustrations and intense common 
sense arrested attention from the start, and the preacher, rapt in 
the fervor of his earnestness, spake as one who came directly 
from the presence of God, while the message which he bore 
was fragrant with the incense that burns in the Holy Place. 
The congregation were held by authority, and 6i he who came 
to scoff remained to pray." Dr. McPheeters was faithful and 
conscientious in rebuke, but this was always administered 
wisely and in a spirit so excellent that the vilest transgressor 
could have no reasonable ground of offense. 

There were those who over-matched him in abstract argument, 
but his intuitions were profound and seldom missed. Indeed, 
his moral organization was so healthful and delicate that it 
shrank back instinctively from the very approaches of error. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETRS, D. D. 38 1 

It only needed for a question to be candidly propounded and 
the mind of McPheeters seized upon the right. What was 
developed to other men by the process of argumentation he 
grasped in a moment, through the fine perceptions of his 
understanding. His judgments were seldom at fault. 

His sermons were not modeled upon the rigid rules of the 
school, but he was impelled onward irresistibly by the logic of 
the Cross. The love of Christ constrained, and transported 
by this thought the pastor, in words of wonderful sweetness, 
entreated the flock. Every discourse was carefully prepared, 
but he always left margin for " the wind that bloweth where 
it listeth." And as he mused, the fire burned, and his enrap- 
tured soul enlarging at the prospect, his countenance glowing 
with light, the truth as it is in Jesus poured forth from the lips 
of this ambassador for Christ with sublime command and 
irresistible pathos. The secret of McPheeters' effectiveness 
was not in his genius, not in his learning, not in any art 
practiced by the orator, but " the expulsive power of a great 
affection" thoroughly mastered his spirit, and as his own loving 
eye looked upon Jesus he could not but exclaim, in holy admi- 
ration and with fervid emotion, " Behold the Lamb of God 
which taketh away the sin of the world." 

The explanation of Dr. McPheeters' power, in the pulpit 
and out of it, is to be found in the fact that he held to, and 
loved with his whole heart, the doctrines of grace. Theology, 
with him was not simply a scientific system, but a vital and 
heavenly reality. There existed no lurking doubt in his mind 
as to the genuineness and authenticity of the Gospel, but he 
believed, with perfect sincerity, that "all Scripture is given by 
inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, 
for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be 
thoroughly furnished." Hence the written Word was always 



382 MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 

examined reverently, and a "Thus saith the Lord" put an end 
to all controversy. He rejected indignantly that canon of in- 
terpretation which handles with latitude and license the oracles 
of God, and accepted joyfully the Gospel of Christ as an au- 
thoritative revelation— that Word of God which effectually 
worketh in them that believe. For this cause its doctrines and 
promises were the unfailing source of steadfast hope and rich 
consolation. No man, however, could be freer from Pharisaical 
conceit, for in his view the sinner has no ground of justification 
in himself, but altogether in another. The doing, in order to 
life, has all been done, and man needs only to receive, " with- 
out money and without price/' the provided atonement. The 
Redemption that is in Christ Jesus is perfect and complete. 
No necessity of the chosen race was overlooked in the original 
scheme. And " when the fullness of the time w r as come, God 
sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to 
redeem them that were under the law that we might receive 
the adoption of sons." No part of the plan was devised by 
the creature, nor in the execution of redemption can the sinner 
even so much as think a good thought. " Herein is love; not 
that we loved God, but that He loved us and hath set forth 
His Son to be a propitiation for our sins." "Jesus Christ gave 
Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity and 
purify unto Himself a peculiar people zealous of good works." 
The salvation of the redeemed, therefore, is neither of human 
merit, nor of accident, nor a Divine after-thought, but 

* ' Grace first contrived the way 
To save rebellious man, 
And all the steps that grace display 
Which drew the wondrous plan." 

To use the very words of the dying McPheeters : " I am only 
a poor, miserable sinner, yet I have such a mighty Savior — 
mighty and glorious — with His own eternal arms around me. 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 383 

And He did not just begin to love me lately, but before, when 
yet a sinner, and before, and before — back into eternity." 
The law, that inexorable claimant, demands payment to the 
uttermost farthing, but this debt, acknowledged by the believer's 
substitute, without quibbling or dispute, was fully undertaken 
and satisfactorily settled. Not an item was overlooked. " For 
God sent His own Son, in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for 
sin condemned sin in the flesh that the righteousness of the law 
might be fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh but after 
the Spirit." And now, while justice prevails, since the ransom 
price is paid, the prisoner must go free, and henceforth there can 
be no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus. The 
redeemed captive is ever after the property of another. The 
sinner has no righteousness now — he never had any in the past. 
He never sought God of himself, and had no desire to retain 
God in his knowledge. " But God commendeth His love to- 
ward us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us, 
much more then being now justified by His blood we shall be 
saved from wrath through Him; for if, when we were enemies, 
we were reconciled to God by the death of tlis Son, much more 
being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life." The safety 
of the believer does not and can not depend on himself. He 
is a " purchased possession." If any lamb of the fold strays 
and perishes, reproach falls inevitably upon the shepherd — 
upon him who began to build and was not able to finish ; for 

" His honor is engaged to save 
The meanest of His sheep." 

It was a profound heart-belief of these scriptural truths 

which enabled Dr. McPheeters to walk calmly, yea, joyfully, 

amid the fires. He did not regard salvation as future, but 

faith, even " in this country far from home," substantiated the 

invisible. He that believeth in the Son hath everlasting life 

and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from 

death unto life. The Church of God is one, and Jesus Christ, 

the same yesterday, to-day and forever, is its Head of whom 



3*4 



MEMOIR OF S. B. M'PHEETERS, D. D. 



the whole family in heaven and earth is named. No child of 
God has to wait. His citizenship is already in heaven, and 
from the first moment of his conversion, onward forever, he is 
blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. 
The gifts and calling of God are without repentance. Here- 
after the rod of correction may be applied by the hand of a 
compassionate Father, but the vengeance of God is turned away 
from His redeemed people forever. It was a patient appre- 
ciation of the wonderful truth, that " all things work together 
for good to them that love God, to them who are the called 
according to His purpose, that softened the pillow of the suf- 
fering McPheeters and enabled him to rejoice in tribulation, 
" looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of 
the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." 

Dr. Wilson says : " The last night I spent with him, when 
in his usual health, was in the month of November last. I 
had preached in the morning from Rev. xxi, 1-4. Our con- 
versation turned upon the themes of the sermon — the New 
Heaven and the New Earth — the New Jerusalem; the personal 
dwelling of Jesus therein with His ransomed people. We sat 
together till midnight talking of these glorious things spoken 
of Zion. Nor shall I ever forget the glowing countenance and 
fervid words which he spoke of the New Jerusalem. It was 
just an echo of the sweet notes of Bernard : 

' ' * For thee, O dear, dear country, 
Mine eyes their vigils keep, 
For very love beholding 
Thy happy name, they weep ; 
The mention of thy glory 
Is unction to the breast, 
And medicine in sickness, 
And love, and life, and rest/ }/ 

" And this loving hope lit up his soul in the very last moment 
of his life." 

Thus suffering and enduring, laboring and rejoicing, the 
watchman stood at his post " till the day broke and the 
shadows fled away." 





* *3| Deaadified using the Bookkeeper process 

A T Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 

T ^ Treatment Date: May 2006 



m J*ajgfs J> \ °*y P|, eservationTechnologies 

# *YV5* * A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION 

rt V # V # • - **q 1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive 

r. V S^/rtTZ* \2 Cranberry Township, PA 16066 

(724) 779-2111 




